ShiftersOfOld
by sKaEtrgrL
Summary: Percy was already different, seeing as he had godly blood running through his veins. Now, his mom drops a bomb on him, one he never saw coming. He was far more than just a demigod, he was a shifter, and one of the Ancient Ones at that...


**A/N: So I literally just made a new story, and this one probably won't come out until tomorrow for me, but whatever. Also, totally random but not random topic: I made REAL BLUE COOKIES TODAY. And let me tell you, I've never had better chocolate chip cookies in my entire life. You've gotta try it. Soooo gooooodd!!!!! **

**Aaaanyways... I had been reading a story that wasn't half bad, and I found it interesting. Basically, Percy is a shapeshifter. But not a _normal_ shapeshifter, mind you, a super _special_ shapeshifter! (Just casually doing jazz hands in the background whispering "shapeshiftah!")**

**I'm honestly shocked that I've already gotten reviews on my fanfic story that I literally _just_ posted this afternoon, and so I just wanted to say thank you so much to Thunderwolf7226. You've been leaving so many reviews on a variety of the stories I've published, and it truly warms my heart, so thank you very much, dude! **

**Anyways, I'm going to start this! It's currently 1:41 AM, and I know for a fact I won't be finishing tonight, so hopefully this'll be up around noon my time tomorrow. **

**Shifters of Old**

_Third Person POV _

Percy tried not to sigh as he picked at his blue spaghetti with his fork. It had been a long, horribly uneventful week, and Percy was dying of boredom. School was one week into the school year, and Percy already longed to escape to his not so normal world, doing what he now considered normal. His junior year had passed uneventful, boring even, and he knew he shouldn't be wishing for action, but just _dam I wish something would happen already!_

The sigh escaped his lips, and Sally and Paul turned their attention towards the mopey teen sitting across from them as he twirled his fork in his spaghetti dejectedly. The couple made eye contact, a silent conversation occurring between the two before sally nodded her head, taking a deep breath. "Percy, honey, are you alright? You don't usually play with your food..."

Percy gave a slight jolt of surprise, not expecting anyone to really talk to him. The spaghetti that had been swirled around his fork was unceremoniously launched into the air, splatting against the beige wall and sliding down at the speed of a snail. Percy winced, obviously feeling bad for flinging his food accidentally, and quickly got up, wiping the blue pasta mess away within moments before returning to his seat. His hand ran through his hair, showing his nervousness. "Uh, Yeah, well, I mean, there's nothing _wrong, _per-se, I'm just..." He sighed, knowing he'd regret the words that'd escape his mouth. "It's so _boring_. I just want something to happen already, ya know?" Paul and Sally gave eachother knowing looks, but remained quiet. "I just... I don't know!" Percy's hands were flung into the air, a gesture meant to show his 'I don't know what I'm even doing with myself anymore' feelings. "And, If we're being honest here... I'm a little nervous for my birthday coming up. I'll be turning 18, after all! Imagine all the taxes..." Percy's eyes were wide, hands gripping his hair in fistfuls. "And it's my senior year too! It's supposed to be the best year of high school, but it just feels like every other year; boring, confusing, and painful to be there!" Percy let his hands flop onto the table, a gentle _Clink! _being heard as some of the utensils rattled. "I just... I don't know what I'm supposed to be feeling right now."

Once again, knowing looks were passed between Paul and Sally. Paul sighed, "Percy, most teenagers feel like this their senior year. It's just jitters and being nervous about facing the real world." Paul cut Percy off before he could protest. "I mean the _mortal_ world, Percy. Don't worry, you'll be just fine, alright?"

Percy nodded, sighed, and gave Paul a smile. "Thanks, Paul." The son of Poseidon stood up, plate in hand. "I'm just gonna go wash my dishes and put the food away. Thanks for dinner, mom. Do you need me to check on Estelle?"

"No, that's alright sweetie. I'll check on her in a few minutes. You just clean up your dishes and then go shower and head to bed, alright? Love you honey!" Sally waited patiently for Percy to leave before speaking to Paul in a hushed voice. "His birthday is next Friday. You don't think...?"

Paul glanced towards the kitchen, barely able to make out Percy's form hovering over the sink. "No. He has enough on his plate already. I seriously doubt it'll effect him, especially since he's already a demigod. It'll probably just skip right over him." Paul shrugged his shoulders, dipping his garlic bread into the spaghetti sauce that remained on his plate.

Sally sighed, leaning back in her chair. "I know, Paul. But still, it's his _eighteenth_ birthday. He'll be at that age. I... I think we should keep him home next Friday for his birthday, just in case."

Paul folded his arms, eyes glancing sideways at his wife. "Sally, Percy won't be like us. He'll hopefully never even have to figure out what else is in his genes that _isn't human. _And poor Estelle will probably have the same problem, only when she's around thirteen instead. You have to keep in mind that he's a demigod, not one of us. I seriously doubt he's a late bloomer."

Sally gave a huff, showing her annoyance. "Paul, you don't understand. I was a late bloomer. I was 16 when it happened to me! You were just weird, having it happen at _eleven_ years old." Paul just gaped at her in shock and mock hurt.

"Hey! I wasn't _that_ young. It happens, okay!" Sally laughed at her husband, Paul joining in soon after.

Percy heard the tinkling of his mother's laughter, and Paul's deep tremors as they rang down and into the kitchen over the loudness of his running water. He smiled, glad his mother was so happy with Paul. He was a good man, and Percy was content with the new baby sister he'd received last year. She had turned one at the beginning of summer, and Percy absolutely adored Estelle.

After putting the food away, Percy stole a quick glance at his parents (even though one wasn't genetically his father, he was a father figure), he walked to the bathroom, stripping and hopping into the shower.

**Time skip**

Percy thought this week was even worse than last week. At least the previous week he'd been attacked once or twice! Nothing even happened this week! It was preposterous! Since when did he, a child of The Big Three, the Twice Savior of Olympus, _not_ get _attacked_? It made zero sense!

Percy was beyond frustrated, slamming the door to his apartment wide open, kicking his shoes into the air (not caring where they went) and dropping his bag next to the door. "I'm home!"

Sally's head popped around from the kitchen wall, smiling at her son as he grumpily made his way towards her. "Hi Percy! You look happy as ever!" She laughed when Percy grumbled, plopping into the Lay Z Boy, rocking harmlessly back and fourth.

Paul was asleep on the couch, an older game of football rerunning on the TV. Estelle was fast asleep in her crib, which was located right next to the couch. Percy smiled at how similarly both father and daughter slept like rocks.

"...so Percy, I was thinking that you could stay home tomorrow for your birthday. I figured we could maybe go camping for the weekend after dinner and cake tomorrow?" Sally had a nervous look on her face, as if Percy would tell her no.

"Uh... sure mom? I don't really get why you keep me home on my birthdays. I have no problem going to school." That was partially a lie, but he really didn't mind going. After all, if he was in school then he didn't get as many embarrassing IMs from his friends (especially Grover. Man that satyr was loud with those dam pipes of his!).

Sally sighed in relief, a thousand watt smile gracing her face. "Wonderful! I'll tell Paul about it when he wakes up." Paul seemed to unconsciously snore in response, making both mother and son laugh.

The night wore on, and Percy went to bed, content with the idea of sleeping in. By the time Percy woke up, it was already 10:48 AM, and Percy was glad some of the day had already wasted away. He opened his bedroom door, grinning at the blue, white and green streamers that fluttered into his room that hung harmlessly from the doorframe. Balloons were taped around the frame as well, and a sign was on the floor with large letters.

**Happy Birthday Percy!**

**We love you!**

**Love Mom, Paul, and Estelle**

Percy grinned widely. Sally knew he hated reading, so she always kept it simple for him, instead opting to tell him for a good hour or so why he was so important to her. It always managed to make him blush, and left Sally laughing at her son's embarrassment.

Percy gingerly lifted the sign up, placing it against his wall in his (shockingly) clean room before walking to the kitchen, the loudness of the streamers obviously alerting his presence. Sally poked her head around the corner of the kitchen (again) and into the hall, smiling cheekily at her now 18 year old son. "Happy Eighteenth Birthday, Percy! You're officially an adult now! How does it feel?"

"Like I'm still 17 and living with my parents," was the snarky reply that Sally received. She laughed at her son's bitterness; he always hated mornings.

"I made you blue pancakes, as well as blue scrambled eggs, blue hash browns, some bacon, and a big glass of freshly made blueberry smoothie!" Percy plopped into his seat, smiling at his mother greatfully before wolfishly inhaling his food, devouring it all at an unnaturally fast pace like usual.

Paul sat across from his step son, astonishment written on his face. "No matter how many times I see that, it never gets old."

Percy looked up from his plate, mouth full of food and a strip of bacon hanging from the side of his mouth. "Wha' mever ge'sh owd?"

Paul laughed at his step son's confusion before swatting his hand in the air dismissively. "Nothing. Never mind Percy." Percy stared a moment longer before shrugging his shoulders, continuing to gorge on his food.

"Pelican..." Sally muttered under her breath, Paul laughing at both Percy and his wife.

"Now _that_ would be a good one." He glanced knowingly at his wife, who at first cocked her head to the side before glaring at her husband.

"No, that'd be miserable. Nobody'd want that!"

"Want what?" Percy asked as he scooted his chair out, taking his plate to the sink.

"Nothing, honey. Now why don't you go get dressed and we'll go get you some new Converse and jeans, yeah?"

Percy practically flew down the hall in excitement. He adored his Converse, but they were so run down that there were holes littered across them, dirt stains hiding the shoe's once baby blue color. Percy put a pair of khaki board shorts on, a blue hoodie on and a pair of ankle high Nike socks, some slip on Air Jordan flip flops gracing his feet. Percy gingerly lifted his worn and beaten Converse to his top shelf, placing them amongst his other shoes. They were like trophies to him, something that he worked hard for, each one holding many memories. Not one pair was the same pattern, varying from white to black to baby blue to tomato soup printed Converse. One pair for each year since he was seven, each year a journey tougher than the last. Percy smiled up at his shoes, knowing that those baby blues were definitely number one on the Damaged List. Proud of last year's work, Percy sauntered out of his room, the streamers on the doorframe billowing out behind him as he graced his mom, Paul, and Estelle with his presence.

Half an hour later, the family of four was at the mall, Percy racing from window to window, observing everything he could. As much as Percy had pretended hating shopping when he was with friends, he absolutely _adored_ shopping for himself. Selfish, yes, but he loved it nonetheless. If the Aphrodite cabin knew... he shuddered at the thought.

Sally and Paul laughed as they casually strolled after the raven haired teen, smiling in amusement at his awe stricken face. Percy had some strange looks sent his way, but it was New York, and everybody minded their own business.

Percy made a beeline for his favorite store: Hollister, a place that had clothes Percy declared as "exactly his style". Percy practically jumped with joy when he saw the large sign stating everything in the store was 20 percent off.

An agonizing two hours later, the family of four left the store with three large bags containing various shorts, shirts, and jeans. There was only one place left-

"Converse!" the demigod shouted with glee, shoving his face against the glass to stare at some of the newer designs. Sally and Paul laughed, and followed their son into the store, watching in amusement as he raced from isle to isle, observing every single shoe. Not even ten minutes into looking, a large gasp escaped Percy's lips, his hands clapped against his face and his mouth wide open in shock. Before him were the perfect pair of royal blue Converse, a light sky blue replacing the usual white plastic parts. He quickly scrambled through the boxes, grabbing a size 13 in men's shoes before tossing the lid away, his slip on flip flops already taken off. A few minutes later, and Percy was practically jumping up and down with joy, smiling at his feet as he hopped from one foot to the other.

Sally smiled; obviosly these were the ones he'd be getting this year. Percy eventually scrambled up to his mother, holding the black box out to her with both hands wrapped firmly around the object, eyes shut tight and smile spread widely across his face. "I'd like these ones please!"

A chuckle escaped Sally's lips. "Alright then. Go tell that to the cashier, honey." Percy raced over to the non existent line, producing the box to the cashier so he could ring him up.

"Ya know, it seems like a pretty normal birthday to me," Paul mumbled to Sally, Estelle strapped to his chest.

"Yeah, it does, doesn't it?" Sally grinned. Perhaps luck was on Percy's side for once.

**Time skip**

Dinner was over as quickly as it'd come, and a large blue cake was placed before Percy. He'd already had multiple IMs from friends, a girlfriend, and even a few gods and goddesses (Artemis and the hunters were a huge surprise, and Percy shouldn't have been surprised when Apollo appeared out of nowhere, causing silver arrows to fly _everywhere). _The classic "Happy Birthday" song was sang, candles were blown out, and blue cake was eaten in a comfortable silence.

Percy yawned, then gave him mom and Paul both hugs, kissing Estelle on her forehead. "Thanks, for everything. I love you all so much."

Sally smiled, Paul's arm wrapped around his wife's shoulder as they watched Percy head to bed. The door clicked shut, and Paul and Sally smiled at one another. "See, I told you. Wouldn't happen, _didn't _happen."

Sally whacked Paul in the chest, who only laughed heartily at her before they too went to bed, making sure Estelle was fast asleep before doing so themselves.

Percy, however, was not sleeping as well as he'd wanted to. He turned side to side, sweat drenching his entire being, sheets thrown across the bed and room hazardly as the Son of Poseidon thrashed about in bed. It was a restless sleep, one that left Percy more than just exhausted...

A loud crash could be heard from down the hall, Sally and Paul sitting upright in bed and glancing at one another. Estelle could be heard crying from the end of their bed, and Paul quickly grabbed their daughter before racing down the hall towards Percy's room.

Their worst fears had come to fruition. And they had been even more frightening than originally thought.

Percy's room was unnaturally strained, like the walls were ready to snap at any second. And hanging limply outside of Percy's room...

...was a giant teal colored head. Large silver horns could be seen curling backwards into the room, easily twice the size as the actual _dragon_ head that casually snored away in their hallway. It's face was filled with pain; it was obviously uncomfortable in the too small room. Sally and Paul stared at one another, unsure what to do. Sure, they'd been expecting Percy to shift, but not like _this_. It had been millennia since an Ancient was born, and that was just Percy's luck that he happened to be one. No wonder it had taken him so long to mature, he was probably still a mere toddler in dragon years.

Both parents stared at one another, and sally sighed before shifting into a deep brown wolf with piercing blue gray eyes, scampering off to the window, down the fire escape, and to the Shifters Headquarters that was on the outskirts of town.

Paul sat down, leaning against the wall and cradling the now sleeping Estelle in his arms. What the Hades was he supposed to do with a _dragon_ in his house? If he tried waking Percy up, he'd probably bring the whole apartment down in a panic. Running a hand through his hair (a tick he'd gotten from his step son), Paul simply chose to watch in silence as the varying shaded blue and silver dragon slept quietly and uncomfortably in his house.

**I was gonna stop, but I'm really into this now XD**

Percy woke up with a splitting headache. He tried to move, but felt like there was something pinning him down. Now that he thought about it, he felt as if he were in a cardboard box that was ready to collapse at any second. Somehow Percy felt that trying to move wouldn't be a good idea. Instead, he opened his eyes. He wasn't prepared to be staring down into the good dozen sets of eyes that stared right back.

"Uh..."

"Percy, honey, don't freak out, alright? Hey, darling, I need you to look at me. Percy? No! Don't turn your head, can you just glance at me? Yeah, there you go honey." Percy blinked owlishly at his mother, her face filled with concern. He tried to open his mouth to speak, but his mother stopped him once more. "Percy, I need you to be as still as possible, alright? These people are friends of mine. They're going to help you with your... Ah... _predicament_."

Percy's face scrunched in confusion. Predicament? What predicament? Did he do something wrong?

One of the people in front of him, an old woman with gray hair pinned in a bun and a long, black trench coat stepped forwards, smiling up at Percy. "Hello, Percy. We're very shocked about this ordeal. Based off your confused look, I'm assuming your mother and Paul didn't inform you of this, correct? Blink once for yes, twice for no." Percy blinked twice, and the old woman nodded in understanding. "Well, fortunately, or unfortunately enough for you, you're a Shifter just like your mother and Paul." The old woman smiled at Percy, as if what she just said explained everything.

"Uh..." Percy stated again, and he could feel a slight tremble with the one word he uttered.

"Shh! You're alright Percy. I can tell you're still confused, so let me explain. You see, Shifters are an ancient line of beings, our DNA not only human, but animal as well. Our souls pick out which animal we are most similar to, and that is what we can transform into. Sometimes we can even do half shifts, where we aren't fully transformed in either state." The woman's kind smile turned serious as she looked into Percy's eyes. "Percy, you must stay calm. You have transformed into a dragon, what we consider one of the Ancients. Your kind of a Shifter is so rare, that we haven't had one like you in millennia. Be proud, youngling, for you will live for thousands of years."

Percy blinked at the woman whose nose was high in the air, like Percy just won the lottery. He felt his heart drop into his stomach. He wanted to live as normal a life as possible! He wanted to live with Annabeth, grow old with her, _die_ with her, just try _living a life_ _in general_, but his mom wasn't human like he thought she was, and neither was Paul. Percy felt like immortality had been forced upon him, like the Fates were laughing in his face at his stupidity, and that him turning down godhood changed nothing. Tears welled in his eyes, and he tried holding them back, but they splashed onto the carpet, each tear practically a good puddle's worth of salty water.

"Percy, honey, I'm so sorry. I-I was hoping it would skip you, that you'd-"

Sally didn't get to finish. Percy glanced at her, so much hurt, a look of betrayal in his eyes, one Sally had never seen directed at her. She didn't need Percy to talk to understand what he was saying: _I thought I could trust you. _And Sally knew that Percy was angry, and hurt, and irrational, but that look still pierced her soul, his still soft sea green eyes now speckled with silver, his pupils slitted and filled with pain.

Percy turned away from his mother, instead focusing on the woman in front of him. He decided he didn't like any of these strange people; they ruined his hopes and dreams for the future in less than ten minutes. "Now Percy, I need you to focus if you want to return to your human form. Just focus on what you were like before, or at least think of yourself shrinking in size and go from there, alright?"

Percy closed his eyes, focusing as hard as he could on what he'd looked like yesterday before going to bed. Messy raven hair, sea green eyes, human, smooshy, _normal_ skin. He could feel the change almost instantly, but he didn't stop until he felt like he was normal again. He opened his eyes, trying not to cry as he lifted his hands up to look at them. The tips of his fingers were a light blue color, his nails long and pointed. His feet were in a similar manner. Percy pushed the people aside, walking to the bathroom and looking in the mirror. The outer most parts of his face had the same light blue tint as his hands and feet, his canines sharp and pointed. His ears were pointed as well, fading from light blue to a deep royal blue at the tips of his ears. His hair was starch white, the total opposite of his once jet black hair. His eyes were still slits, the irises still holding silver speckles in them. What bothered Percy the most was the long, majestic, silver horns that curved backwards past his head, double the length of his ears. The horns seemed to glow mockingly at him.

He hated it.

"Looks like you're still unable to transform all the way. That's alright, Deary. You'll get the hang of it with some training." The lady motioned for him to follow, but Percy seemed to recoil from her instead.

"Training? _Training?_ You... you want me to train? I- I don't have _time_ to train! I have school, and-"

"Oh don't worry about your schooling. There are plenty of Shifters your age at our own private school. You can finish your schooling there."

"But-"

"Ughs, just be out of the apartment and meet us at the van in twenty minutes. If you're not there by then, then we'll simply leave you to rot." The old woman snapped her fingers, the rest of the strangers leaving with her. Percy only glared at the floor angrily, hating this situation.

Sally slowly walked towards Percy, reaching a hand out to hold his cheek. He slapped her hand away from himself, sitting on the closed toilet seat, placing his now much heavier head into his blue, clawed hands. "Percy, I-"

"You what? You _lied _to me about my heritage not once, but _twice?_ You kept all of _this_"-he motioned at himself- "a secret from me?" Sally could hear the hurt in his voice. She stayed silent, letting him continue on. "Mom, I thought that we had agreed a long time ago; No more secrets. I... I _trusted_ you." Tears fell freely from his face as he stared up at his mother.

Sally was on her knees, hands to her face as she wept openly in front of her broken child. She didn't say anything. She didn't need to.

Paul walked in, holding the (somehow) still sleeping Estelle. "Percy, you don't understand. Your mother and I-"

"Yeah, you're right. I _don't_ understand what's going on."

"Percy, please, just hear me out." Percy still glared at Paul, but remained silent. "Your mother and I are both Shifters, her a wolf and me a bear. We've known eachother for a long time, because we went to school together. I never knew about the Greek world until I met you, because the world of the Shifters is entirely different than that of the Greek one you know. The Shifters have their own version of the Mist, simply calling it Fog **(real original right? XD)**, and that's what keeps them separate. Only the Elders know of the Greek world, and even then they simply know that they exist. Never have either worlds interfered with one another. Your mother had met Poseidon, had you, and she wasn't sure how to tell you about either world."

"I waited for what I assumed would be the right time. If that time never came, then I would be fine with it. I was so scared that you'd have to deal with both worlds... I'm sorry, Percy, I'm so so sorry." Sally wept even harder, clutching Paul's leg like a lifeline. Percy's teartracks were dry, but you could see them reflecting in the light.

"I'm sorry mom. I... I shouldn't have hit you like that. I should've been kinder and more understanding. I didn't think about what you were going through. I'm sorry, mom." Sally sighed with relief, lunging forwards and clinging to Percy as she cried into his shoulder. She could feel the small protrusions that were likely large spinal scales that hadn't completely disappeared with the transformation. She figured Percy could figure it out later.

After a little more debating, Percy agreed to go to the Shifter's school so he could learn the fullest extent of his abilities. Packing up a large amount of clothes since he'd be staying in a dorm (he packed some old clothes as well as all his new ones and a few pairs of shoes), Percy hugged his family, promising to IM them when he got the chance. He felt self consious about all of his extra... _features_... as he walked through the apartment complex, but nobody seemed to notice. _The Fog..._ Percy gave his own little sigh of relief before walking down to the black van, the old woman sitting inside impatiently.

"Oh, I was almost ready to leave! Come, come, child! We have lots to work on!" Percy nodded, and quickly hopped in the backseat next to the woman, thinking over his mother's words.

_Don't tell them you're a demigod. None of your Greek side must show while there, understand? It's for your own safety, because I don't know if there's anyone else like you, and I don't want you hurt. _

With that thought, Percy sat next to the woman silently, listening to the radio as they drove away from his home.

**It's 4:00 AM here... buuutttt... I don't wanna stop... so time skip!**

Percy gaped at the large metal gates that led to the mansion and well forested area inside. It reminded him of the X-Men school, with how big everything was, but twenty times larger. The van pulled up to the front of the mansion, and the old woman got out rather quickly. "Well? Come along, child! We have much to discuss!" Percy followed her, glancing at the property. There were children and animals running everywhere, and Percy had to assume that some of the animals _were_ children. He shook his head, following the old woman inside. She blabbed on about the building's history, and Percy felt bad for accidentally spacing out on something that Annabeth would've been fascinated with.

The duo eventually made their way to a building just to the right of the large mansion that would supposedly hold classes. This building, equally as large and grand as the first, was the boy's dormitory. He would bathe and sleep here, and there was a large dining pavilion behind the main mansion that was where everyone would gather for meals. "Now, the student in room 211 is rather... boisterous, to say the least, and nobody wants to room with him, but he's the only one with space available for you. Make sure he gives you a tour some more, and then brings you down for lunch. You relax for today; it is Saturday after all. We can begin your training tomorrow. Understood?"

"Yes, Madam." Percy hated showing respect to this old bat, but he was told by his mother that if he didn't show respect then she'd personally skin him alive, and that was scary to think about. With that note, the lady handed him a fancy, old key before turning on her heel and swiftly leaving Percy to his own devices.

Percy inserted the key, anxiety filling his lungs, and opened the door.

The room was easily the size of his apartment, a large window taking up most of the back wall with a window seat to keep it company. Against the same wall as the door was a bed to both his left and right, with bookshelves reaching to the ceiling high above the king mattresses. A small desk was against the right side of the room between the bed and the window, while on the left was a door leading to the bathroom and walk in closets. There were two sinks, a toilet, and a large shower inside the bathroom with the walk in closets being on opposite sides, the doors facing one another. Now, Percy had never been one for fancy and extravagant things, but this place _definitely _was.

Percy gingerly placed his two duffle bags into the closet, walking back to the room and sitting on the left side of the room (closest to the bathroom) that remained unoccupied. He flopped onto the bed, wincing as his horns got snagged in the sheets. _Dam horns, _Percy thought as he reached up, struggling to get his new appendages free.

The sound of a window opening and closing alerted Percy, his heightened senses going into overdrive, his eyes slitting even more than they had been. He sat stock still, ignoring his horns and focusing on the smell of... _monkey?_

"Hey!" Percy flinched in surprise as a monkey flipped onto his lap, quickly transforming into a small, curly haired brunette boy that strangely reminded Percy of the the Stoll brothers. "My name's Marcus, but my friends *if I had any* call me Mark!" He reached a hand out to Percy, smiling widely. "You're the new kid, right?"

"Uh, Yeah, my-"

"Woah! Are those horns?! And why's your skin blue? Are you some sort of lizard or something? Why's your hair white? Are you prematurely going gray?" Mark flipped over Percy, gingerly poking at one of Percy's shiny silver horns.

"Uh, Yeah, and I guess you could say I'm a lizard... um, could you help me untangle my horns please? I only found out I was a shifter this morning and I still can't transform back very well."

"Oh, yeah, sure! No problem! One sec dude." The monkey boy quickly went to work detangling the fluffy sheets from Percy's glowing appendages, and after a moment got them free. Percy sat up so fast he might've gotten whiplash.

"Uh, thanks Mark."

"Yeah, no problem. Um, what's your name again? I didn't catch it." He scratched his head sheepishly, and Percy gave a slight smile since he had the same habit.

"My name's Percy. Percy Jackson. And you're Mark?" Percy held his hand out, and even though Mark hesitated for a moment he shook Percy's blue clawed hand.

"Percy? Like... um, yeah my name's Mark." He seemed to hesitate, like he knew who Percy was. With great reluctance (and with Percy's deadpanned look a driving factor), Mark asked Percy a question. "Your full name wouldn't happen to be Perseus Jackson, would it?"

Percy flinched a little bit but nodded. "Yeah, but I prefer Percy. How'd you know my name?"

"Uhhh... do you have a pen? One that you keep with you all the time?"

Percy felt very uncomfortable, and was drawing Riptide from his pocket, ready to uncap his trusty weapon at any second. Mark's eyes widened comically, snatching the pen from Percy's hand before Percy could even move. "Hey! Give that back!"

Mark just stared at the Greek letters engraved on the side of the cheap pen. "Oh my gods..." Percy stopped in his footsteps, staring at the monkey boy who'd somehow made his monkey tail and feet appear to help him climb up Percy's empty bookshelves. As far as Percy knew, only demigods used that phrase...

Both boys' eyes went wide as saucers as they pointed at eachother. "You're a demigod!" Percy spoke in Greek just in case Mark wasn't.

"You're the Great Percy Jackson! Twice Savior of Olympus! Holy Hades!" Mark flipped down onto Percy's bed, the Son of Poseidon quickly snatching his weapon back as the monkey boy paced on his bed. "Oh my gods. I'm meeting _the _Perseus Jackson. No, I'm sharing my _room_ with Percy Jackson. Oh my gods!" Mark whipped his head towards Percy. "Show me your tattoo."

"What?" Percy asked incredulously, holding his arm tightly and keeping his long sleeved shirt in place.

"Prove to me that you're _the_ Percy Jackson. C'mon, show it already!"

"Fine! Whatever!" Percy yanked his sleeve up, showing the SPQR tattoo that seemed faded into his blue skin (after all, his tattoo disappeared with his transformation, not that he knew that anyways).

Mark gasped loudly before jumping back, pointing a shaky finger at Percy's arm. "Oh my gods it's real!"

"Of course it's real, ya nimrod! What else would it be? A sticker?" Percy glared at Mark, thoroughly annoyed at this point. He hadn't meant to start transforming, but he did, and soon enough he was squished just like last time. He let out a puff of air, ignoring Mark's shrill screech as he turned into a monkey, climbing onto Percy's snout.

"Oh my gods, and you're an Ancient to boot! Holy Hephaestus! I can't believe it!" Percy rolled his eyes, glaring cross eyed at the annoying pest that was resting on his nose (Mark the monkey was _very _itchy, and Percy was ready to kill his new roommate). Percy tried to snort the monkey off of him, putting some more force into the huff of air he let out earlier. Mark shivered, staring at Percy's nose like it was a diamond. "Oh my gods! You've got freeze breath!" At Percy's questioning look, Mark elaborated. "Oh, come on! Ya know Superman? Well, he has freeze breath right?" Percy just blinked at the monkey sitting on his face. "Oh my gods dude! He has freeze breath! Obviously you have that too! It just dropped like 20 degrees man!"

Percy rolled his eyes before closing them, concentrating as hard as he could on his human form. Mark let out a yelp as he dropped to the floor, watching Percy shrink back down to his normal size of 6'8 (stupid dragon genes, making him super tall... at least he could tease Jason now..). Percy gave a feral growl filled with annoyance when he noticed the light blue tail that faded to a deep blue at the end, glaring as his new appendage swung innocently behind him. "Oh my GODS! This is rediculous!" Percy sighed loudly, obviously fed up with this whole ordeal. He flopped onto his bed, only to glare at the ceiling angrily to realize his horns were stuck. _Again_.

"Mark?"

"...yeah, Percy?"

"I'm stuck again."

**I'm gonna crash... it's 4:46AM... be back ASAP... TIME SKIP!**

Percy tried to ignore the looks sent his way as Mark led him to the front desk in a mansion behind the dining pavilion. _There are fricking mansions everywhere..._ Percy couldn't help thinking, accidentally walking straight into Mark's back.

"Hey! Watch it, dude!" Mark slapped his hands onto the front desk, ringing the tiny silver bell impatiently. Percy glanced around the large room, looking down the wooden halls that had bronze signs hanging above each door. His eyes went a little wide when he noticed that the closest sign to him said "Pink", and the one after said "Tilly's".

This was like their own little mall, a shopping center.

It was only now that Percy realized how small his _new clothes_ were on him. His navy blue shirt was now a three fourths sleeve, only reaching to the middle of his forearm while the base of his shirt was like a crop top, not even close to covering his belly button. His once knee length khaki shorts were now in the middle of his thighs. It was a miracle that his new Converse hadn't split open from his sharp toes that now touched the end of his shoes. With a sigh, Percy realized that he probably didn't look very proportionate what with how he now towered above everyone else, but then again the Demidragon was still well muscled, if not even more now. He was still very lean, but he just added an extra foot or so to his height. It made Percy sad that he'd need new clothes not even 24 hours after buying new ones.

Mark was arguing with a lady, her deer antlers and doe eyes staring agitatedly at the monkey boy. She twisted a piece of her light brunette hair, sighing in exasperation. "Mark, I told you, Deborah didn't call and inform me of any newcomers. I can't give him free clothes... even if he needs them..." She muttered the last part, looking Percy up in down with slightly tinted cheeks but calculating eyes that reminded Percy of Annabeth.

Oh gods. _Annabeth!_ She was _so_ going to kill him! But he'd promised his mother he wouldn't tell anyone, that he'd keep his two worlds desperate for everyone's sakes. And he couldn't IM her, for all he knew she'd be able to see all of his changes no problem!

Mark sighed loudly, bringing Percy back to the conversation. "Listen Nancy, can't you tell that the kid _obviously_ doesn't have a grip on his powers?" Percy let out an indignant 'hey!' as Mark continued. "Have you ever even _seen_ this kid around?" Nancy's scrutinizing faze was focused on Percy once more, and his face was scrunched up in confusion and concern.

With a sigh, Nancy picked up the older styled phone next to her, twisting her finger around the black chord as the phone rang loudly in her deer ear. "Hello? Ms. Deborah? Yeah, _Mark_ is here declaring he's got some new kid with him?... Uh, yeah... definitely lanky... he's got a good sense of style... Oh my gosh, just patch me through already or find Instructor Flagwitz yourself!... yes, alright, I can wait. Thank you!" Nancy looked at Mark impatiently, then turned her face towards Percy. She was a pretty girl around Percy's age, What with her large soft brown eyes, the gentle amount of deer fur that graced the outermost bits of her face, white freckles splashed across her cheeks. Her small deer antlers were no bigger than Percy's pointer finger, but they looked soft and fuzzy. Her light brunette hair had a bronze tint to it, the tips of her hair a soft creamy white that matched the lobes of her ears and freckles. She wore a soft green tank top, the words "#Deers4Life" imprinted across the front. Her shoulders were also covered in a light brown fur, fading into her skin as well and her white freckles helping with the transition. Over all, she was beautiful, but Percy still thought Annabeth to be prettier.

"Hello?" She asked, waving a hand in front of his face. "I asked your name?"

"Oh, uh, it's Percy. Percy Jackson." Nancy gave a quick nod, then returned her attention back to the large telephone, mumbling words into it. Percy didn't care much to listen to what was being said both ways, knowing that he could listen if he wanted to, but he didn't. Instead he continued observing the hallways, trying to see if Hollister was there. "Okay, Thanks Deborah. I'll just help Percy out really quick and then I'll see you for lunch, m'kay?" Nancy hung up the phone, turning her coppery brown eyes on Percy. She stood up, sighing as she quickly whipped her measuring tape out, walking around Percy and taking measurements for whatever the Hades it was for. "Oh my, you've obviously outgrown these clothes. I take you're a new Shifter?"

"Uh, yeah. This morning was my first transformation." Percy sighed, stretching his arms above his head. "And I just bought these clothes, too!"

Nancy gave a light hearted laugh, the tinkling of her voice reminding Percy of his mother. "Oh, I'm sorry Percy. That's rough. Don't worry though, once you get transforming down, it'll be easy to shift back into a more human like state. Most of the people here prefer their half states, like the one you and I are in now, but there are a few like Mark who go as human as possible. Sadly, you can't go _all_ the way human; only tears upon years of experience will let you do that. However, I'm sure you'll get to the point where nobody'll notice your features. And if you learn to manipulate the Fog well enough, then you could probably even be in your half state and nobody'd notice." She shrugged, finishing her measurements and smiling kindly at Percy. "Now, let's go get you some new clothes. Headquarters has agreed to let you pick out whatever you'd like, so you can grab however many clothes you want, as long as you, and possibly Mark, can carry it all." Once again, she shrugged her shoulders.

Percy grinned widely, beyond ecstatic that he'd be getting _more_ clothes. "So whatever I can carry, I can keep?"

She nodded her head, noticing Percy's enthusiasm. "Yup! And I'm sure Mark would love to help you carry stuff back, meaning you could probably get double the load!" She gave a light squeal, Percy doing the same as they both clasped hands with one another, bouncing up and down. They managed to calm down after a moment or two, and Percy grinned savagely at Nancy.

"You wouldn't happen to have a Hollister here, would you?"

**I ran into a wall today... it took some of the skin on my nose off... TIME SKIP!**

Mark sighed exasperatedly as he plopped Percy's bags full of clothes onto the bed. Percy and Nancy had talked the entire four hours of shopping, going through every store and grabbing clothes to try them on like a fashion show. Mark was absolutely _miserable_.

Percy walked through the dorm's door, gingerly setting his bags onto his bed, taking clothes out and removing tags, smiling as he placed his shirts and jackets on hangers, while folding his pants and shorts like a store would. His tail flicked happily back and fourth as he hummed to himself. "Oh, that was so fun! I wish I could do that every day!"

"No!" Mark shot up from his seat on Percy's bed, sitting criss cross and staring into Percy's mesmerizing sea green and silvery colored, slitted orbs. "Percy, how in _Hades_ do you enjoy _shopping_, of all things?! I thought the almighty Hero of Olympus would be all over the idea of swords and knives and 'whacha!' and 'Kablamo!', ya know? Not shopping!" Mark made karate chops in the air, flailing his legs around on the bed.

Percy just blinked in confusion, tilting his head, his silvery white hair getting in his eyes, his (surprisingly visible) white eyebrows scrunching up in confusion. "I don't understand. I mean, I love sword fighting, but shopping is fun too! I mean, you get all these fun new things, and if I'm being honest I had originally hated all of my new features, but Nancy was really nice, and she showed me these cool bracelets and some necklace-looking thingies that I can hang off my horns, and she even pierced my ears! I feel like a bada-"

"No. Let me stop you there. You look like a glorified rich kid, dude." Percy gasped, stopping midway from putting a bronze band around one of his horns. "Oh come on, you know it and so do I. So, just hurry up, put on some clothes that _actually_ fit you, and let's head down to dinner." He mumbled under his breath, "since we missed lunch because of your stupid shopping spree..."

Percy, of course, heard. He put a hand to his chest, showing mock hurt. "Mark! How dare you! I thought we were friends, roommates! Oh, the pain!" He flopped onto his bed next to Mark, said monkey boy scrambling out of the way as Percy's sharp horns descended horribly close to his legs. "You wound me!"

The two laughed at eachother, and Percy tried to sit up, glaring at the ceiling once more. "Schist."

"Your horns stuck again?"

"Yup."

Mark sighed, detangling his friend's horns from the sheets. "Don't worry, Perce, you'll get used to it eventually."

"How long have you been a Shifter, Mark?"

"Hm? Oh, since I was seven. I used to go to Camp Half-Blood, because I was tossed in an orphanage at birth, but when I woke up as a monkey, I bolted out of there. I was found a few months later by Instructor Flagwitz. Ya know, the scary old lady that brought you here?" Percy nodded, only to be smacked by Mark as he continued his never ending battle with the sheets sucking in Percy's horns. "Anyways, I go to Camp Half-Blood maybe once a year, and only for a few days. Then I come back. I feel more like a Shifter than a demigod, if that makes sense." He shrugged his shoulders, sitting back as Percy got up, facing the monkey boy. "Anyways, why don't you go put your clothes away and change, yeah? Then we'll head down to dinner."

Percy nodded, and quickly hung his clothes up, putting his lower garments onto shelves and underwear and socks into drawers, placing his two pairs of sneakers (one for athletic wear, one his Converse) and a pair of Air Jordan flip flops onto another shelf. Smiling, Percy slipped on a pair of khaki shorts (almost identical to the ones he arrived in), a white shirt with the word Hollister printed on the front in an ombré of blue to green to yellow, and a light zip up jogger jacket that was black with a white stripe running down the sleeves. He put on a pair of socks, placing his slightly larger Royal blue Converse on, smiling at his simple but nice look. He had a simple piercing in his ears, just one on each lobe, figuring he'd try it out. Percy had to admit, the tiny silver jewel went well with his horns, shirt, hair, and even the light blue to deep blue ears.

Percy sauntered out of the bathroom, feeling surprisingly light weight, as if he had been a Shifter all his life. He felt... comfortable... in his new skin. He felt _right_.

Mark gave a gentle whistle as the duo walked towards the pavilion. "Dang, Perce! You clean up well!"

"Why thank you, Mark." Percy replied cheekily, following Mark into the pavilion. Whatever cockiness Percy might've had was instantly turned into rubble as he stared at all the faces in the pavilion. There had to be at least three hundred people seated, and most were staring at Percy since he was obviously new and since Mark had practically flung himself into the room, smiling at everyone's annoyed faces.

All conversation seemed to drop. Percy sported Nancy sitting at a table with a few Shifters, smiling and gently motioning for him to join them. Mark, of course, tagged along, and the two roommates plopped onto the bench across Nancy, the room returning to its boisterous volume a few moments later.

"Hi Percy! Your new clothes fit you a lot better than your old ones! And the piercings look really good on you!" Nancy smiled kindly at Percy, practically ignoring Mark entirely. "Let me introduce you to some of my friends!" Nancy turned to point at a sheep girl, her hair white and curly, no longer than her shoulders. Her sheep ears could be seen amongst her fluffy hair, and the white fur that faded into her face didn't go unnoticed. She had small hoop earrings towards the top of her ears, smiling kindly at Percy.

"Hello! My name's Deborah. You probably heard Nancy talking to me on the phone earlier."

Percy nodded, smiling kindly at the petite girl. "It's nice to meet you Deborah."

Nancy then motioned to the bull boy that sat on the other side of Deborah, who was clinging to his arm. _Obviously a couple..._ Percy thought, staring at the boy whose horns pointed forwards through his sandy blonde hair. His eyes seemed a little beady, though you could see the faint blues of his small irises. You could see a light sandy fur color fading into his face, coming down his shoulders as well. "This is Daniel, Deborah's boyfriend."

"Sup." Daniel nodded his head towards Percy, not seeming to really care about the new addition to the table.

"Uh, hi." Percy gently waved at Daniel, turning back to Nancy.

"We usually have more people sitting with us, but they aren't really close to us. Deborah and I are best friends, and obviously Daniel is her boyfriend, so us three usually stick together. I just sorta figured since you don't have any friends yet"-Mark let out a cry of protest-"you could come sit with us for dinner!"

"Oh, thank you Nancy. Yeah, I haven't met any of the Shifters here except for the people here at this table." Percy rubbed the back of his head sheepishly, his white hair getting scrunched up from Percy grabbing at it.

Nancy looked ready to say something, but a microphone was tapped on, bringing everyone's attention to the slightly raised stage in the middle of the pavilion. Instructor Flagwitz, the lady who'd brought Percy here, smiled at all the Shifters kindly. "Good evening, children! How are we fairing on this lovely Saturday evening?" Some shouts were sent her way, mostly full of 'good'. "Wonderful! We have a few announcements before we get to eating." There were some sighs, but nobody said anything. "Now, now, it's not a big deal. I'd like to address a problem we seem to be having a lot lately: Please do _not_ eat other students. I don't care if you're a predator or not and you want to hunt, do _not_ do that here. We provide you with food, so please restrain yourselves. The next time someone is eaten, whoever is responsible will be washing dishes and cleaning the bathrooms for a month." A few shouts of protest were sent towards Instructor Flagwitz, but she just swatted the air like there were bugs around her head. "Calm down, calm down! It's not that bad! Honestly!" Percy sat there, staring in shock at the Instructor. The students _ate_ one another?! What the actaul Hades?! "I'd also like to introduce some new Shifters. Percy, Abagail, and Spencer! Would you please come forwards?" Percy slowly got up, gaining many stares from people around him. He walked up, standing next to Spencer, a curly, black haired kid who had wolf ears sticking through the mop on his head. There was a deep gray fur that covered some of his face, running down his arms and legs as well, his fluffy deep gray tail swishing helplessly behind him. His brown eyes were slitted like Percy's, though not as thin. Abagail stood on the other side of Spencer, her red hair pulled back into a pony tail, her curly locks flowing harmlessly in the air. Her fox ears seemed to twitch, the white tips dancing with the slight breeze. Her tail also swished frantically from side to side, her orange-yellow eyes wide with nervousness.

"Abagail! We found her this afternoon, and she'll transform for you all!" Abagail stared incredulously at Instructor Flagwitz, but nodded her head. She closed her eyes, and a few moments later a petite fox stood in her place. Many people clapped, and Abagail returned to what she looked like before, her ears perked up with pride. The Instructor gently pushed her back towards her table, and she scampered off quickly, grateful for not being the center of attention anymore. "We found Spencer here only two hours ago, scouring for food in the woods. Please, transform for us!" Everyone cheered in excitement, watching with awed looks at the wolf that now stood proudly before them. Murmurs went around the pavilion; wolves were rare, and very strong Shifters. Spencer waltzed to his table, a cocky grin on his face. "Finally, we have Percy! We received a call from his parents early in the morning, saying their son had finally Shifted after eighteen long years!" Many cheers went throughout the crowd, all excited to see what he would be. "Percy will now transform for us!" The cheering only got louder, and Percy's anxiety shot through the roof. He looked frantically at the Instructor, reading her lips. _Breathe. Concentrate. _Percy nodded, closing his eyes. He could feel himself growing, hear the crowd emitting gasps and shrieks. He felt himself grow to his full height for the first time, unrestrained and not shoved in a room. Percy opened his eyes, looking down on the crowd that now looked like mere ants for his large feet to step on. He looked at himself, noticing the different hues of blues and silver that littered his body. He turned his head almost all the way around, an advantage of having such a long neck, and stared at the wings that were tucked into the sides of his back. He gingerly looked down, praying to all the gods he could think of that he didn't accidentally squish anybody. He blinked down at the small figure next to him as he stood on one foot, the rest of his body tucked as tightly as it could be, his tail wrapped around his waist. His foot, or rather claw, took up the entire stage, and that was just his one claw! He easily had to be as big as a Giant (the Greek ones), towering over the group beneath him. He gently waved, receiving a few laughs from down below. He sighed in relief, letting a small breath of chilly air out, accidentally showering the pavilion with a light dusting of snow. A few people laughed, and some even cheered. Percy closed his eyes, thinking of being back to his original form. He smiled when he noticed he didn't have a tail this time, although the rest of his features remained. Percy received a few giggles because he was still in the same position he had been in as a dragon; one foot on the floor, the other raised like a flamingo, and his hands held close to his chest.

"Everyone, is like to introduce you to Percy, the first Ancient to be born in millennia." Many gasps were heard, but everyone cheered, practically blowing Percy's eardrums out. He smiled at Instructor Flagwitz before quickly making his way to Nancy, Daniel, Deborah, and Mark, his three newer friends staring in complete shock while Mark grinned like a mad man. "On that Happy note, let us eat!" People grabbed their empty plates, rushing towards the nearest serving table to grab food. There had to be at least twenty serving tables that surrounded the pavilion, all featuring the same items (although the variety was still large). Percy received many looks and congrats as he walked with his group, grabbing a few cheeseburgers, fries, and a large vanilla shake. He smiled kindly at the server before taking his food back to his seat, his new friends not far behind.

"Percy, I had no clue you were an Ancient! Why didn't you tell me?!" Nancy scolded him, though her smile said otherwise.

Percy rubbed the back of his head sheepishly, his horns tilting to the side with his head. "Oh, well I didn't think it to be all that important. I'm new to this, after all." Nancy nodded, Deborah and Daniel nodding as well.

"So, you're like an actual dragon?" Percy turned his eyes to wards Deborah, frowning as the girl winced under his gaze.

"Uh, I guess so. But don't worry. I have no intention of eating any of you. That's just despicable." Percy's face scrunched up, showing his irritation. "I mean seriously! Who eats a person, let alone a fellow classmate? It's just wrong." Percy angrily but into his cheeseburger, watching Daniel and Deborah, even Nancy wincing. "What? What'd I do?"

"Oh, well... it's just that, being more of prey kind of animals makes us feel a little bad for other prey, so seeing people eat meat can bother us sometimes." Deborah's eyes were wide as saucers, staring intently at Percy's closed mouth as he chewed.

Percy blinked, quickly swallowing the bite in his mouth. "Oh. I'm sorry." He gently pushed his plate away, not noticing the shocked looks he received from the three sitting across from him. "I understand. A good friend of mine is a vegetarian. He doesn't eat any sort of meats, or any byproducts from them. If you'd like, I can try not to eat meat in front of you guys if that'd help with your nervousness. I didn't mean to frighten any of you."

Mark stopped cutting his steak, staring at Percy in astonishment. From what he'd seen of Percy the few days a year he'd go to Camp, he was shocked that Percy wouldn't eat _meat_ of all things in front of these people he only barely just met!

The trio across the table must've had similar thoughts. Nancy spoke up first. "Hey, you don't have to do that for us-"

"No, I want to do it. If it makes you more comfortable, then I don't mind." Percy quickly stood up, taking his plate back to the serving table, coming back with a plate of Asian salad and a fruit mix on the side. "Is this better for you guys?" They gave small nods, watching as Percy gave a slight grimace when he took a bite of his salad. "I need to be better about eating healthier anyways." They all nodded, and Percy began to eat the food on his plate like there was nothing wrong. He'd occasionally take a sip of his shake, but otherwise he showed no signs of irritation at the food in front of him.

Mark sighed, getting up and getting a salad as well. Everyone gave him questioning looks. "What? If you're all eating healthy, then I will too... even if it'll be _really_ gross." He scrunched up his face, but ate his salad with little complaints.

By the end of dinner, everyone was laughing and smiling, talking animatedly about past experiences. "So you actually blew up your school bus with a cannon?" Deborah laughed lightly, Daniel grinning widely.

"Hey! It was an accident, okay?! It's not like I was _trying_ to hit anything. Heck, I didn't even know the dang thing was _loaded_!" Percy huffed, crossing his arms over his chest. His ears twitched with agitation, and he let out a little huff of air, accidentally frosting Mark's Dr. Pepper.

"Duuudddee, what the heck?! Now... oh my gosh it's like a slushee now! Never mind!" Mark picked up his spoon, licking it clean before using it to devour his now slushified drink. Everyone stared at him with raised eyebrows. "What?" Soon enough, they were all laughing, smiling at one another like they'd known one another for years.

Percy and Mark left the group, saying they'd all meet up tomorrow morning. They walked to their dorm room, listening to the crickets chirping. Mark tried not to snort at the way Percy's horns faintly glowed in the dark, his eyes iridescent as well.

Percy plopped onto his bed, smiling as he gently stoked his sheets. He sighed in content, before standing up and heading to the bathroom. "Hey Mark, I'm just gonna IM my mom and step dad really quick, alright?"

Mark practically flew out of his place on his bed, lunging towards Percy and climbing up the lanky boy. "Oh my gods! I've never seen an IM before! Can I _pleeeasse_ see it? Pretty please?"

Percy shoved his hands in Mark's face, prying the ape child off of him. "Alright, you can see if you answer a few of my questions really quick."

"Oh, yeah, sure! Whatcha wanna know?" Mark jumped onto the edge of the sink, staring at Percy expectantly.

"A few weeks before my first transformation, I had only been attacked my monsters twice, and last week I didn't get attacked at all. Do you know why?"

"Oh, yeah totally! We're part animal, so they usually leave us alone. They'd have to literally be arm's length away to smell your demigod scent, and even then it'd confuse them because of your animal genetics. They'd probably leave you alone unless they knew exactly who you were. And once again, you'd probably be protected by the Fog, so they most likely wouldn't attack you."

"So in other words, there's a pretty big possibility I'll never be attacked by a monster again?" Percy asked incredulously. He wasn't sure if this was a dream come true or not.

"Yeah, basically. You could probably even own a phone without drawing monster's attention towards you. After all, once you become a Shifter, your human DNA is reduced to a small fraction of what it once was. Let's say you're a regular human with Shifter DNA. Your soul selects what animal it'll be, and that animal takes over, leaving only 30 percent or so of your DNA human. Because you're a demigod, though, you probably only have like 7 percent of your body as a human or something. The rest is godly and animal blood. Make sense?"

Percy nodded, a little sad that he was more inhuman than an actual human, but that didn't matter. What mattered was that his heart and mind stayed human. If he ever went down the wrong path... he didn't want to think about it.

"Alright. Thanks for telling me Mark. Now, let's go IM my parents." Percy waved his hand, a fine mist spread out in front of him. Grabbing one of the ringlets for his horns, he made a rainbow, quickly tossing a drachma into the mist. "Oh Fleecy, do me a solid. Show me Sally Blofis, New York."

The mist shimmered a little bit, and Sally and Paul appeared on the screen, Estelle being gingerly cradled in her mother's arms. Sally, like usual, noticed before Paul did. "Oh, Percy! How was it? Are you doing okay?"

"Hi mom. I'm actually doing really well here. I- don't touch it Mark! You'll ruin the connection." Percy swatted Mark's hand away, Sally frowning.

"Is someone with you? Percy, I thought I told you-"

"To not tell anyone, I know. Mark already knew me. He's like me." Sally seemed a little confused. "Ya know... a demigod? He goes to Camp for a few days a year, that's why I don't know him. Who's child did you say you were again?"

"Oh, Hermes!" he smiled cheekily, and Percy rolled his eyes. "Hello! Wow, this is so cool." He waved at Sally before trying to poke the IM again, Percy swatting his hand away.

"What'd I say? Don't touch it! Anyways, he's a son of Hermes. A little annoying, but overall a good kid."

"Awe, you warm my heart!" Mark held his hand over his heart, spinning in a circle.

"Anyways, how're things going over there? Anything interesting happen?"

"Well, Annabeth said she tried to IM you but you're at a location she doesn't know. She was extremely concerned." Sally gave him a pointed look.

"What? Don't look at me like that! How am I supposed to call her when I look like _this_?" He used his hands to gesture at his face and body. "I thought you told me to keep the two worlds separate."

"I did, and you can. The Fog will cover your appearance right up. As observant as Annabeth is, she won't be able to tell you look any different than usual, alright? Now, I need to put Estelle to bed. Make sure you call me tomorrow, okay honey? I love you."

"Love you too mom. Goodnight."

"Goodnight Percy. And make sure you call Annabeth tonight!"

Percy groaned loudly. "Ugh, alright! Goodnight!" He quickly swiped his hand through the mist, then repeating the quick process of setting up the call for an IM.

Mark stared at Percy from the edge of the counter, head tilted curiously. "Dude, aren't you supposed to call Annabeth already? Hurry it up!"

Percy turned to glare at Mark. "Shut it. I'm freaking out a little bit, alright?"

"Dude, you should be. Annabeth is _scary_, and I've never even talked to her before." With that, Mark jumped from the counter, interlocking his hands behind his head and walking out of the bathroom. "I'm going to bed. I don't need to listen to her chew you out. G'night, Perce."

"Gee, Thanks Mark." Percy sighed. "Goodnight. I'll see you tomorrow." Percy closed the bathroom door, and tossed the drachma into the mist. "Oh Fleecy, do me a solid. Show me Annabeth Chase, San Francisco."

A lumpy mess of curly blonde hair covering a desk was all that Percy could see. He smiled at Annabeth's face peeking through her hair. "Hey Wise Girl."

It was barely a whisper, but she heard. She leapt up, looking at Percy crossly and confused for a moment before recognition seemed to cross her face. "Percy?" Said boy blinked, praying to the gods that he didn't look like anything other than himself. "What the Hades? I've been trying to get ahold of you all day!" She glared at her boyfriend, hands on her hips. "I even called your mom, and all she would say was that you're somewhere safe and that I shouldn't worry. Of course I'm going to worry though! And- oh my gods. Perseus Jackson, what in Hades name is _that_?" she asked him incredulously, pointing towards his head. He winced; she obviously figured something out.

"Well-"

"You got _piercings_?!"

Percy wasn't expecting that. He smiled sheepishly, rubbing the back of his head. "Uh, Yeah. I started up at a new school this morning, just outside of New York. It's a private school that my mom went to, and I promised I'd try it out for her."

"What?! But school just started two or three weeks ago! You didn't get kicked out of your other one, did you?" She eyed him suspiciously, calculating and watching for any lies.

"Uh, no I didn't. The Instructor of the school came to the house and asked for me, so my mom forced me to come. It's got some really confusing name that I can't pronounce, otherwise I'd tell you what it's called." Percy kept his hands at his sides, doing his best to avoid any nervous ticks that might arise.

"So you don't know what the school is called?" She stared at Percy knowingly.

"Nope." Percy popped the p, being completely honest. After all, he never _did_ catch the name of the 'school' he was attending. "Anyways, I just wanted to check up on you. My mom called a few minutes ago and she reminded me to call you."

"So you weren't gonna call me?"

Percy's eyes widened as he shook his hands wildly. "No! I totally planned on calling you!" Not that night, but he planned on doing it eventually.

"Uhuh. And when exactly did you plan on calling me?"

Schist.

"Uhh... when I was free and remembered?" He shrugged helplessly, waiting for the onslaught of curses that were sure to come.

Which they did. Half an hour later, Percy dragged himself into his room, his tail (which had manifested itself during his lecture) dragging limply behind him. Percy just simply took off his shoes, not even bothering to change into pajamas. He climbed into bed, laying on his side, and fell asleep almost instantly.

**It's already so late! 6:30 PM! Anyways... TIME SKIP!**

Percy glared as the curtains covering the large window were flung open, Apollo's sun shining humorously down upon the grumpy Son of Poseidon. Percy turned away, his face now up against the wall, covers flung over his head (though his horns could easily be seen holding up the blankets). Something jumped on his bed, making Percy growl. "Get out."

"Rise and shine, sleeping beauty! It's a wonderful day!" Mark said cheerfully, smiling down at the strange shaped lump beneath him. Frowning, the ape child began jumping up and down aggressively on the bed, hoping that'd bother Percy into getting up.

It didn't work. Marcus was flung from the bed, crashing onto the rug in the middle of the room. "Dude, What the heck?! It's time to get up!"

Percy growled again, his tail whipping violently under the covers. _So that's what flung me through the air..._ Mark idly wondered. "What time is it, Marcus?"

"7:32."

"Then it's definitely _not_ time to get up."

"Uh, yes it is! Breakfast will be served at 9:00 sharp, and-"

"Then wake me up at nine."

"What?"

"Did I stutter?" Percy turned towards Mark, ripping the covers away from his face to reveal a very angry, very grumpy (and slowly turning blue) boy.

"No?"

"Then why are you still bothering me?"

"Isn't it obvious? I'm bored, you're asleep, and I need something to do!"

Percy's nose twitched in irritation, letting out a small huff of air that began freezing some of the bed. Even though Mark had only known (as in talked to) Percy for a day, he had quickly learned that Percy huffing and a drop in temperature meant _bad_ things.

"Mark, if you don't leave me be right now, I'll actually stab you with one of my horns. In. The. _Face_."

"Okay, okay, enjoy your hour or so of sleeping then! Uh... bye!" Mark quickly transformed into a monkey, swinging himself out the window in two seconds flat.

Percy growled in annoyance before turning back towards the wall, bringing the covers back over his face.

"What do you think you're doing?"

Percy's eyes shot open, his teeth clenched in a snarl. "What does it look like?" he snapped back irritably, facing whoever was unlucky enough to wake him up. Percy glared, wincing slightly as his eyes adjusted to the light. Standing before him was Instructor Flagwitz, scowling down at the boy lightheartedly. Percy's glare immediately dropped. "Instructor Flagwitz, I'm sorry. I thought you might be Mark trying to bother me again." Percy stretched, yawning loudly. He didn't seem to notice the sheet that was stuck to his horns, making him look like he had a wedding train flowing behind him.

"Good morning Perseus. Glad to see you awake. It's already 8:47, so hurry it up and get dressed. We have things to do today." Percy nodded, stumbling his way to the bathroom. After taking a leak, he went to his closet, grabbing a brown T-shirt with a small "Phil's Fishmarket" logo in the corner, a larger version spread across his entire backside. Thalia had gotten it for him a while back, and it had always been far too big for him (she had thought it funny to buy him an XXL). Now, although ratherly wide on him, it fit him lengthwise perfectly. Trying to tug the shirt on over his horns, however, was a difficult task. He struggled with the shirt, managing to get the neck hole over one horn but an arm hole over the other. He gave a small yelp when gentle hands gripped his shoulders, and gingerly untangled the shirt, pulling it down over his scarred body (stupid Tartarus).

"I'm not going to ask where you got those scars. I won't say anything." Percy nodded gratefully to Instructor Flagwitz, smiling at her.

"Thank you. Let me just change my shorts and put on some shoes and we can go." She nodded, walking back into the room to give him privacy. Not even five minutes later, Percy was dressed and ready to go. He wore black basketball shorts, and his athletic shoes (he had a feeling he'd be needing them). He also had a blue hoodie thrown over his shirt, a small logo of GAP branded in the upper right corner.

"Good. Follow me." Percy obliged, not really sure why he _wouldn't _follow the Instructor. They waltzed past the pavilion, past the shopping building, and past many other buildings that Percy didn't know the purpose of. Eventually (and I mean like a three hour hike through the woods) the duo made it to the back of the property, standing in front of a large building, vines growing around and along its walls. They walked up to the door, Instructor Flagwitz knocking like the door might bite her.

"Vanessa? I've brought the boy." There was a moment of silence before the door cracked open, revealing an ancient looking woman, her face so wrinkly that it looked like a crumpled up towel. She somehow had black hair that flowed elegantly down to her calves (though the number of split ends in her hair seemed endless). Her eyes were almost totally closed, though you could still see her ruby red irises piercing through your soul. She had small golden horns protruding from the top of her head, so small that they couldn't be bigger than Percy's thumbnail. She smiled (though it looked more like a snarl) at Percy, glancing him up and down.

"So you're the new Ancient, eh? I expected more." She began closing the door, only to fling it open and laugh only inches from Percy's face. "Hah! You're face is priceless! You look lost, like a confused puppy dog. We're going to fix that. You're very lucky, you are, that you got a dragon as your Ancient being rather than something else like a unicorn or Pegasus." She scoffed, making Percy furrow his brows. He was ratherly fond of those animals, thank you very much. This 'Vanessa' must've noticed the look he was giving her. "Oh, calm down, child. I'm just saying that you're lucky you're a dragon like me. Hehe... come inside, deary. We've got training to do." Percy stared back and forth between Instructor Flagwitz and where Vanessa had disappeared, eventually settling with staring at the Instructor.

"What... what in the name of..."

"Don't question it. She's millennia old; you'll just have to deal with it."

"Wait... didn't you say the last Ancient was born millennia ago?...so, she's-"

"The last born Ancient before you, yes. And you just so happen to be the same species as her, which makes your training all the easier. Now, follow her. She'll be training you for the school year after classes. However, it's a Sunday, so you'll be starting today. Shoo! Shoo! Hurry along already!" Percy just blinked owlishly at Instructor Flagwitz before sighing, walking into the pitch black house.

Percy tried not to cringe at the musty smell of the house. The door suddenly closed behind him, Vanessa's voice echoing throughout the house. "So, you're a dragon, eh? You don't look like much. Awe, and look at that! Your silly little horns and eyes are glowing! You can't control anything, can you deary? Hehe, this'll be the most fun I've had in years..." Percy could feel himself get slapped, and not somewhere pleasant... his rump burnt from the horribly fast contact. "Oh, come now, is that the best you can do, Little Dragon? I expected so much more. Ah well, I'll just die and let you try figuring this all out on your own. Hehe..."

Another slap, this one with more force. "Ow! Are... are you _spanking me?!?!_" Percy couldn't believe this old woman. What was going through her head?

Cackling could be heard. "Of course, Deary! How else would I punish naughty Little Dragons like yourself, hm? Well? What's your reply?"

"Uh, my reply is that I don't even know what I'm doing _wrong!_ What are you trying to get at, Lady?" Percy was crouched down, his claws naturally elongating themselves, a glowing blue toxin dripping from the tips.

"Ah, _poison! _This is getting fun! Gehehehehe!"

Another spanking was sent Percy's way.

"What the actual Hades! Seriously, what're trying to accomplish here, huh? What do you gotta day for yourself, Lady?"

Silence.

"Well?"

The lights flickered on, showing the old woman not even a foot away from him. "Ah, you said Hades, did you not? Like a swear word?" Percy winced a little. That was all Vanessa needed to know. "Ah, So you're not just a dragon, but a demigod as well! That's a shock!"

Percy just gaped at the woman, watching her pour herself a cup of tea. "You... what... how..."

"Oh, don't be silly, Little Dragon. I know all about the Greek world. In fact, I'm apart of it myself!" She gave a slight bow, her back cracking loudly as she did so. "Oh! My back had been out for years! Thank the gods!" She sighed before standing up straight. "My name is Vanessa Eisenhower. I'm the daughter of Hephaestus!" She grinned wickedly at Percy, her sharp teeth glinting dangerously in the yellow light.

"Oh my gods." Percy sat on the floor, face scrunched in concentration. "Oh. My. Gods."

"So, who's kid are you, hm? Hermes? Ares?... Ooohh, Poseidon! Yes, definitely a son of the sea, those eyes can't belong to anyone else! Even though your hair is white right now, it must've been black... yes... yes..." She mumbles to herself, Percy staring at the woman like she was some sort of foot fungal.

"What the actual Hades! You're crazy, Lady!" Percy quickly started backing away, scooting his butt back into a wall. "And I've seen a lot of crazy things, Lady!"

"Oh, calm down, Dragon Boy. Now stand up, we need to train." Percy stared incredulously at the lady as she continued, her face turning deathly serious. "Perseus Jackson. You do not yet understand the role you will play for the Shifters. I need to make you ready before that time comes. As strong as you might be, you are nowhere near strong enough. Now come. We will begin by training your senses."

Percy blinked owlishly at the lady, but she seemed to have enough common sense for Percy to listen. He sat criss cross in front of Vanessa, staring impatiently at her, tapping his fingers and moving his leg up and down. "Oh, foolish Little Dragon. The only way you'll be able to train your senses is if you calm down. Let your mind go blank. Think of nothing but darkness, understand? Now close your eyes. Breathe through your nose, out through your mouth. Place your hands on your knee caps. Breathe in, out. In. Out. Good. Now, let's focus on your sense of smell. What do you smell? Focus."

Percy sat completely still, inhaling and exhaling mar a steady pace. "I..." A trail of yellowish dust seemed to appear amongst the darkness, swirling around... something. No, some_one_. "I can see a trail of yellow dust. It's leading to you. It's _your_ scent. I can see your scent! It... it's everywhere!"

"Good! Now, focus even harder. Can you tell which trails are newest?"

"Uh... it's difficult to tell. They're all overlapping eachother, mixing together. I... I can't tell." Percy sighed, opening his eyes.

"Don't worry. You're still new. When did you first transform again?"

"Yesterday. While I was sleeping."

Vanessa stared at Percy shocked. If he was already able to see scent trails, then this would make training all the easier. She had honestly thought he had been a dragon for at least a year or two, not just _one day! _She was excited. "Oh, this is going to be fun!"

**Going to watch a movie... I'll keep writing when I'm done... TIME SKIP**

Percy tried not to sigh in pain as he left Vanessa's house that evening around midnight. His whole body, both physically and mentally, was beyond exhausted. Some of his more prominent traits were a little more... visible than usual. His skin seemed a little more blue, some scales even visible. His tail dragged behind him, and his hands were now more dragon like, the blue scaly hands now reaching his forearms before fading back to normal skin. His teeth were all a little pointed, his canines gently jutting our from his lips. His horns seemed unnaturally long, going back an extra few inches, and his back had scales all along the spine, two bumps protruding from his shoulder blades where his wings desperately wished to be released. They had worked on his senses all day, to the point where he had to dodge Vanessa's attacks (spankings) in the dark, his body and mind going into overdrive. As much as Percy wanted his body to just shut down, his senses would never be able to go back to what they once were. His hearing was so sharp that he could hear the rabbit in its burrow five miles away, it's gentle shuffling making Percy's ears twitch in annoyance. His nose had been bombarded with scents as soon as he exited Vanessa's misty building. Percy could practically see every detail of the lightning bug that blinked every few seconds from miles away, and his sense of touch and taste were undefeatable. Put something even remotely in his vicinity and he could practically taste it as if he were eating it. The nerves under Percy's skin were so sensitive that he could feel every single blade of grass beneath his feet, every single breath in the air around him, he could just _feel_ things. Percy loved all of his senses, but at the same time hated it. He had turned them all on, now all he needed to figure out how to do was control them. Vanessa said they'd work on it tomorrow, but it was already midnight and Percy still had another thirty minute walk. Percy sighed, sitting down in the grass, watching all of the lightning bugs flickering on and off around him, some drawn towards his glowing horns and eyes. Percy smiled; he always loved fireflies. They always made things brighter, no matter how dark things were. A silver, ethereal glow illuminated the area, almost like a smaller moon, and Percy realized that his body gave off a faint glow, his horns glowing brighter than ever before. Percy smiled. He felt at peace. It was... comforting, to say the least. Percy looked around the small clearing, figuring it was big enough for him to transform in. He smiled to himself, slowly allowing his dragon body to stretch out in a way it had never done before. His wings were slowly reaching for the stars, reaching just above the tallest pine trees in the forest. He curled up in a comfortable ball, listening to the sounds of the crickets chirping, the gentle twinkling of the fireflies and the moon, the smell of dew on the grass.

Percy fell asleep within seconds, letting out gentle puffs of air that would leave a chill in the air and frost on the ground.

**I know I just did a time skip, but it's just to morning, m'kay? TIME SKIP!**

Mark stretched in bed, allowing his tail to unwind from around his body. He still had some trouble with transforming (as did most other Shifters), so he would wrap his monkey tail around his waist to prevent people from teasing him. After all, he was just the stupid 'monkey boy'.

Sighing, Mark got out of bed, looking to where his dragon companion should be. The key word: _should_. Percy wasn't in his bed. In fact, the bed was still made, meaning he hadn't come back last night. Mark quickly got dressed, then transformed as quickly as possible before flinging himself out the second story window, letting his agile body fall through the air to the treetops down below. He swung for a while, looking everywhere he could think of for the Son of Poseidon, and eventually decided to check the woods. If he didn't find anything, then he'd head back to the dorms and wait. It was only six in the morning, after all, and classes didn't start until 8:00 AM sharp.

After another twenty minutes of searching, Mark was ready to head back. That is, until he felt a gentle breeze that sent shivers down his small spine. Mark whipped his head towards the area it had come from, swinging his way over as quickly as possible. In the middle of a clearing slept a large blue and silver dragon, curled into a ball with wildlife sleeping and somehow growing around it. Small, strange glowing plants grew up around the dragon, frost gently leaving delicate designs across the surface, and some birds and deer, even a few foxes and coyotes gingerly sleeping around the slumbering dragon. Mark couldn't tell if the plants and animals were being protected by Percy, or if Percy was being protected by them.

Mark shook these thoughts away as he dashed towards the slumbering dragon, gently plopping himself on Percy's snout like usual. "Percy! Hey! Percy!" Mark cringed a little, bit grabbed his tail and shoved the tip into one of Percy's nostrils, allowing his tail to flick around a little. Percy immediately opened his eyes, sneezing out a torrent of ice that left trees frozen for a good few miles. Mark was glad his tail had somehow escaped Percy's attack; he couldn't imagine his poor tail with frostbite.

Percy glared at the peak of a monkey perched on his face, his eyes going a little cross eyed to stare at Mark angrily. "Get. Off. _Now_."

"Yup! Yup! You got it! Um, I just wanted to let you know that it's already 6:30, and classes start at eight. I know it sounds early and everything, but it'll take us a good thirty minutes to get back to the dorms, and you smell stinky, so you probably wanna shower and get ready. Ya know, make sure you have everything for your classes and stuff."

Percy gave out a huff, a small amount of frost layering on the magical looking plants that surrounded him. "Yeah yeah, alright Mark. I'm coming." Percy shrank back down, his arms folded and his tail shrinking into nothingness. Percy looked down, noticing that he was back to what he now considered normal, his fingers only gently tipped with blue. He walked out of the field, not seeming to notice the magical meadow he left behind as it was filled with life.

A comfortable walk later, and the boys arrived at the dorms around 7:10. Percy quickly removed his clothes, hopping into the shower and enjoying its warm embrace. By the time Percy got out, it was already 7:43. He quickly whisked away the water, sending it down the drain before grabbing a pair of clothes and somehow tugging the shirt on over his horns. Percy smiled at Mark as he walked up to the ape child, holding a thin notebook and a pencil. "I'm ready!"

Mark nodded as they walked out of the dorms, walking to their first class. Thankfully, they were in the same grade, and there were only forty seniors or so out of all three hundred Shifters.

As the duo sat down at a partnered wooden desk, a short and stout lady came into the room, her mousy ears and tail a dead giveaway as to what she was. "Hello class! I'm Miss Flitenburg, and I'll be your home room teacher. Now, let's get to work on math!"

Percy was actually surprised when he managed to actually understand what was happening before him. _Heightened senses,_ Vanessa's voice seemed to whisper in his head. His strong senses had helped with his ADHD and dyslexia, making him far more focused. After all, he'd spent most of the previous day meditating, so sitting in a class was just like that. Percy closed his eyes, steadying his breathing as he focused on the teacher's words. Her voice was murky at first, but with the help of her scent, Percy followed the whispy white trail, listening intently to every word the teacher said. He could hear the way the chalk tapped against the board, and could feel the particles of chalk being flung into the air with every stroke. Percy lifted his pencil, imagining exactly what the teacher was writing. His pencil moved, making quiet replicas of the noises the teacher made. Percy opened his eyes, using all of his senses to focus on the task at hand. Never had he felt so... so... _concentrated_, so well put together. It was a nice feeling. He felt... accomplished.

The class was dismissed at nine, and sent to science. Then at ten, they were sent to history. Eleven was English, and twelve was lunch. One PM was a free period, meaning you could pick whatever class you wanted. There was a large variety, from French to Russian to Art to archery. Percy sat down quietly in Instructor Flagwitz' class, listening intently as she taught the Shifters' ancient tongue. Slajan (slaw-han) was the name of the language, and Percy was proud to learn it. Instructor Flagwitz declares that she'd learned Slajan from the previous Ancient, which brought a smile to Percy's face. _Of course it was Vanessa. _

It was two o'clock, and Percy immediately went to his dorm, setting his notebook down on the desk he and Mark shared. "Hey, where ya going dude? You were scribbling stuff down in all of our classes, but you weren't actually paying attention to that stuff, were you?"

Percy looked over his shoulder at Mark, grinning. "Actually, I did. And I wrote everything down word for word. If you're having any trouble, then just use my notebook as a reference, yeah? I've got the whole thing memorized anyways." Percy waved goodbye before beginning his long walk to Vanessa's, jogging every here and there to make sure he was there before 3:30. The sooner he was there, the better. Percy had already had good stamina before he became a Shifter, but now he could jog at a consistent pace for a decent amount of time, usually a good forty minutes or so. He was a Vanessa's doorstep by 3:28. He smiled toothily before knocking on the door.

"Ah, you're here. Let us begin."

**A slightly bigger time skip than usual... TIME SKIP!**

Percy grinned at Vanessa, trying not to laugh at his triumph. He'd been working on controlling his size and transformations for months now, and it was already the second week of November. He'd already gone over senses, his claws and their toxicity (their poison levels and how to extract it if necessary), and he'd been trying to work on his transformation skills for what felt like forever. Now, he finally felt like he had a decent grip on things. He looked almost entirely like he used to; his hair had a few white strands of hair, but was overall back to its shiny raven black hair color. His eyes were still sea green with small speckles of silver in them, but he could control the slitted pupils to the point where they were almost totally round now like a normal human eye. His canines were still a little long, but nothing overly extraordinary. His blue skin was gone, his hands, feet and nails looking like regular human hands and feet. His ears were still slightly pointed, but it was so slight that you could barely tell, and his silver horns were now the size of his thumb nail, small like Grover's had been when he first met the satyr. Percy could honestly go out in public, could see his demigod friends in person, and they probably wouldn't really be able to see any differences. Obviously, Percy's height was a problem, one that sadly couldn't be solved, but Percy had grown used to his 6'8 stature, and he didn't really seem to mind. Percy smiled widely at Vanessa, hugging the Ancient tightly.

"Oh, thank you thank you thank you thank you! I can go home for thanksgiving and nobody'll even be able to tell the difference whether the Fog is there or not! Yes!" Percy cheered, fist pumping the air. He stared into Vanessa's eyes, his own eyes sparkling with joy. "Hey, I know you're old and all-"

"Hey!"

"-but if you want then you can join me and my family for thanksgiving, be reintroduced to some older students of yours and my demigod girlfriend."

Vanessa looked at her protege with shock. She hadn't been invited anywhere in years! "Are you sure that's a good idea, Perseus? I... I haven't left this building for at least a decade or two."

Percy only smiled. "Oh, it'll be fine! And if you don't wanna come then that's fine. But I'd really like it if you'd come. You're not just my teacher, you're practically family. You're sorta like the grandma I never had. It... it's nice." He rubbed the back of his head sheepishly, smiling down at the short old woman who gaped at the young man in front of her.

_His kindness knows no bounds. He is truly a dragon with a pure soul_. Vanessa smiled, and gave Percy a hug for the first time, shocking The young man before he hugged her back. "Very well then. I shall come. But!" She looked pointedly at Percy, "you must come and pick me up. We will fly to your house, Alright?" Percy looked a little panicked but Vanessa only laughed in amusement. "Do not fret, Little Dragon. After all, what else have you been training for?" She cackled, turning and walking away to her room. "I'll see you tomorrow, Perseus. Don't be late, Dragon Boy."

Percy let out a snort, waving as he walked away. "Yeah, Yeah, don't be late yourself, Old Lady. I'll see you tomorrow, Grammy."

"Yes, I'll see you tomorrow Perseus." Vanessa smiled widely, before walking to her bedroom, closing the door with a gentle 'click'.

**Another little timeskip... **

Percy smiled as he flew through the woods, Mark sitting firmly on the 5'0 long dragon. Percy did a quick flip, laughing when Mark screeched at him in his monkey form. Percy only snorted, angling his nose upwards so the frost would fly into Mark's face. Not even ten minutes later, the duo was in front of Vanessa's house, knocking quietly.

Said old woman opened the door not even ten seconds later, smiling at the duo. "Ah, glad to see you're both on time. I take it this is your best friend Marcus that you speak so much about, hm?"

Percy blushed a little, nodding. "Yeah. Mark, this is Vanessa. She's my teacher, and a good one at that. She's also a demigod like us!"

Mark gaped openly at the old woman before him. "Woah, for reals?! Why didn't you tell me sooner?!"

"Why do you think? I don't need you getting all excited over pathetic little nonsensical things. Now, you've got a small bag with clothes, right?" Mark nodded. "You've got my small bag of clothes that fit me, right?" Another nod. "Grammy, you've got a few days worth of clothes, yes?"

She rolled her eyes, puffing smoke out of her nose. "Don't be rediculous, you stupid Little Dragon, of course I have extra clothes! Can we just go already?" Percy rolled his eyes but nodded nonetheless. Mark quickly transformed into a monkey, waiting patiently as Percy transformed into a small, five foot long version of himself before climbing onto the blue-silver dragon's back. Both watched in amazement as they saw Vanessa transform into a four foot long black and red dragon, golden accents like her horns and claws only added to her majestic form. Even through old age she still remained beautiful.

"Dang! Perce, you didn't tell me Ness here was an Ancient, yet alone a dragon like you!"

Percy rolled his eyes as they began their quick flight to New York. "Oh, calm down. The Old Hag is a warm blooded dragon, while I'm cold blooded. In other words, she can create hot things while I can create cold things. Vanessa says that if I train hard enough then I might be able to perform things fire dragons can, because she learned ice dragon tactics and abilities over time!" Percy talked to Mark animatedly while Vanessa simply soared through the air, a feeling of freedom pulsing through her body. They all fell into a comfortable silence, staring at the glowing night lights of the city below them. After a good fifteen minutes or so of flying (which was a million times faster than walking, mind you), they quietly landed on the roof of the apartment. Vanessa shifter to her human form, Percy doing the same while Mark quickly tucked his tail in. He was still struggling to do more than just a half transformation, but he'd made progress. His monkey tail was pretty much the only thing he still struggled with. The trio walked down the stairs, Percy carrying Vanessa on his back like a father would his daughter (the old hag didn't want to walk down the stairs, and Percy didn't really blame her). Percy smiled as he knocked on the door to his apartment, a gentle 'come in!' heard from the inside. The trio walked in, smiling when Sally popped her head around the kitchen. "Oh, Percy! I'm so glad you're home, baby!" Sally came out of the kitchen, arms spread wide so she could hug her son. She turned her attention towards Mark, who merely smiled sheepishly. "And you must be Mark. Percy's talked so much about you!" Finally sally turned towards Vanessa, confusion turning to shock rather quickly. "Oh my gods! Vanessa! I-I haven't seen you since I was a child! Oh it's so good to see you again! You look the same as ever, what with your never ending beauty!" Sally bent down, giving the old woman a hug. "Now, what are you all doing here standing like this? Come along! Let's get you all comfortable." The trio grabbed their bags, bringing them into Percy's room and plopping them onto his bed before walking back into the kitchen, sitting down at the surprisingly long table. Percy counted a total of fifteen seats, eleven of them empty. Paul was sitting at the end of the table reading a newspaper while Sally finished up in the kitchen. There was a gap in the seats like there should be an extra seat, but Percy didn't question it. All Percy knew was that his mom had invited some of his friends over, and that was that.

The doorbell rang, and Percy jumped from his seat. He swung the door open, mouth grinning so wide you'd think his face would split. "Oh my gods! Annabeth!"

"Percy?! What in the Hades-" Percy didn't let his girlfriend continue, opting to bend down and kiss her instead. Annabeth was probably a good 5'9, so Percy was practically a foot taller than her, his head almost hitting the doorframe.

"Oh my gods, I missed you so much!" Percy hugged her to his chest, ignoring her shrieks of protest. Eventually he let her go, laughing as she scowled up at him.

"What in the actual Hades happened to you? I thought you already had your growth spurt!" She crossed her arms, glaring at Percy as he rubbed his neck sheepishly.

"Ah, well, I had another one, and I definitely wasn't expecting to grow this much." He simply laughed as Annabeth huffed in annoyance before she stood on her tippy toes, pecking him on the cheek and walking into the apartment.

"I missed you too, Seaweed Brain."

Just as Percy started following his girlfriend to the kitchen, another knock was heard at the door. Percy sighed exasperatedly, but that didn't hide the large grin that broke out across his face. He opened the door, smiling at all of his friends who stared up st him like he'd grown an extra head (well, at least they got the part where he grew right). "Nico, Thalia, Grover, Juniper, Leo, Calypso, Jason, Piper, Hazel, Frank, and even Chiron! My gods, I can't believe that you're all here! Mom said she was inviting some of my friends, but I wasn't expecting so many! Oh, man, this is totally awesome! Come in, come in!" Percy moved to the side, ignoring his friends' incredulous looks directed at his height. Jason, however, stopped in front of Percy, holding himself as tall as he could, frowning when the top of his head barely met Percy's chin. "I know, I had a growth spurt. Crazy, huh bro?" Jason simply nodded his head, eyebrows raised so high that you couldn't see them hiding under his hair.

As they all sat down in their seats (the small gap made for Chiron's wheelchair), Vanessa stared directly at the disguised centaur, him staring right back with equal amounts of shock. "_Vanessa?_" Chiron asked incredulously, like he'd seen a ghost.

"Oh, please, Chiron. Don't act so surprised. I'm still alive, we can talk about it later." She waved her hand dismissively, Chiron still staring at her with eyes so wide they looked like they'd explode any second. The rest chose to ignore the duo, instead opting to ask eachother questions.

"So, Percy, care to introduce us?" Annabeth asked, obviously demanding he answer.

"Oh! Uh, guys, this is Mark. He's a demigod that goes to school with me. He usually only goes to Camp Half-Blood for a few days each year, so it wouldn't surprise me if you didn't recognize him. This old lady next to me is Grammy... erm, Vanessa. She's a daughter of Hephaestus, as well as my personal teacher at school. Vanessa, Mark, this is Chiron, Leo, his girlfriend Calypso, Grover, his girlfriend Juniper, Nico, Thalia, Jason, and Hazel, who're my cousins, Frank is Hazel's boyfriend, and Piper is Jason's girlfriend. Last but not least is my girlfriend Annabeth Chase, the most important person to me in the whole world. Everybody, you already know my mom and Paul, and Estelle is sleeping right now." Percy smiled widely before they all began eating, the first few minutes in absolute silence.

"So, how's school Percy? Your grades doing average?" Annabeth and Sally looked at Percy expectantly, the rest of the table turning their attention towards the tall demigod.

Percy swallowed nervously, setting his fork down. "Um, I actually have a 4.2 GPA right now." He rubbed his neck sheepishly as everyone started flipping out. They got quiet when the Son of Poseidon continued. "Vanessa here's been teaching me about meditation and tapping into my more natural side, which has really helped me focus in class. I actually brought some of my notebooks home so I could review for some upcoming tests I have on Monday." Everyone stared at Percy in total shock, not believing a single word. Obviously Mark and Vanessa continued to eat because they already knew all of this, but Annabeth had this look on her face like someone was trying to choke her to death.

"Uh, Percy, you wouldn't mind if I looked st these notebooks of yours, would you?"

Percy shook his head. "No, not at all. I can go grab them for you really quick if you'd like."

Annabeth shook her head. "No, I can wait-"

"Percy, please bring Annabeth your notebooks. She's just trying to be polite." Percy nodded at Sally before quickly racing down the hallway, emerging a moment later with a good seven or eight thick notebooks stacked on one another.

"Here ya go. If you want, some of you guys can look at them too." Percy offered some to the other members of the table, Chiron, Annabeth, Sally, Paul, Mark, Jason, and Vanessa all grabbing one. Vanessa stared at the notebook with calculating eyes, Chiron doing the same as well as Annabeth. Vanessa rose an eyebrow before speaking in a smooth, angelic language most of the table had never heard. "Ah, Percy. Your Slajan writing is surprisingly accurate. I accommodate you for writing your English notes in the native tongue."

Percy Bowes his head deeply, his voice seeming to drop to a deeper voice filled with respect, something most of his friends had never heard. "Thank you, Ancient One. Your words are very kind." He inclined his head, a slight bow making most of his friends gasp in shock.

Sally smiled, clapping her hands while Paul nodded approvingly. "Oh Percy! You're doing so well!"

Chiron stares back and forth between Vanessa and Percy, shock written on his face. "Perseus, you aren't... you aren't a Shifter, are you?" Percy's muscles tensed, making Chiron nod in understanding. "This is very unexpected. Do not fret, I won't say anything to anyone, not even the gods." Percy sighed, nodding gratefully.

Vanessa simply glared at Chiron. "How do you know Slajan?"

"Do not mistake me for a fool, Vanessa. We can discuss things later." They have eachother pointed looks before nodding to one another.

"Woah, dude! That's so cool! What language is that?" Leo asked, bouncing up and down.

"Oh, uh, Slajan," Percy stated, slurring the word as much as he could so the Fog would hopefully cover it up. The rest of the table nodded, a few looks of confusion on some of their faces.

They all talked about their school year, how the camps were doing, how the hunt was, etc etc. eventually, the demigods started leaving, the only ones still remaining being Chiron, Juniper, Grover, and Annabeth. Grover And Juniper had been quiet the entire meal, simply staring at Percy and Vanessa like they were made of gold. Annabeth even tried waving her hand in front of their faces, but that didn't work. Percy got up, helping clean the table. Their eyes followed his movements. Percy just gave them weird looks, but didn't say anything. Mark and Paul were sitting on the couch watching football, while Chiron talked in Slajan with Vanessa, the tone of their voices showing their frustration. Percy didn't listen in on their conversation, opting to help wash the dishes and put food away. Annabeth approached Percy, standing next to him as he washed and dried the dishes. "Need any help?"

"No, I've got it. Would you mind handing me any other dirty dishes you see, though?"

"Yeah, of course." Percy could hear Annabeth's heartbeat; it was faster than usual. Something was bothering her.

"Are you alright, Wise Girl? You seem a little skittish."

She turned her gray eyes towards him, face scrunched in confusion. "Yeah, I'm fine. Why ask?"

"Oh, well you just seem a little nervous, is all."

"So what if I am?" She looked at Percy pointedly, expecting a good answer.

"Then you can talk to me and I'll listen. How does that sound?"

"Hm... I talk, you answer. How about that instead?"

"Alright." Percy dried his hands, heading to the Lay-Z-Boy to sit down in. "Whatcha wanna talk about?"

"Well, I was curious... I couldn't read the language in your notebook."

"Yeah? So? There's more than just Greek and English out there, ya know."

"Well, obviously. I just... What language did you say it was again?"

"Slajan." He said it crystal clear, praying the Fog would do its job.

"Hm... alright then." The two sat in silence, Annabeth curled up on Percy's lap as he rocked them back and forth. Eventually Annabeth fell asleep, and Percy brought her to his room, tucking her into his bed. "Goodnight Wise Girl. I love you." He kisses her forehead before gently closing the door, heading back to the kitchen. Grover And Juniper simply stared at him. "Uh... shouldn't you two be heading back to camp?"

Grover blinked a few times before nodding. "Uh, yeah... hey Perce, you wouldn't happen to... Uh... be more... in tune with nature lately, have you?"

"What? Uh, I have a few friends at school that are vegetarian, so I haven't been eating as much meat lately if that's what you mean. Why ask?" Percy had a feeling, but he hoped it was wrong.

"Oh, no reason. I just... you seem so... _connected_. Like even more connected than I am, which is strange since I took over for Pan when he faded. You... you have this faint aura around you, like it's suppressed. If I just..." He reached his hand towards Percy, who quickly backed away.

"Woah! Grover, let's, uh, let's get you home, okay? Juniper, can you help me please?"

Said nymph looked at Percy. "Hm? Oh, uh, yeah. Sure. No problem."

"Hey, just out of curiosity, how're you away from your tree? Can't that... I don't know, kill you or something?"

"Oh, usually yeah it'd kill a nymph for her to be gone from her tree, but because Grover is the lord of the wild, I can usually go away from my tree for a few hours, maybe even a day at most. It's pretty cool, actually."

Percy nodded before having Juniper help lift Grover up off the chair, their hands touching. Juniper gasped loudly before staring at Percy. "An Ancient One... no, you couldn't be one... it's not possible. Definitely not real. They're just fairy tails anyways." She shook her head, eyes glazing over as she grabbed Grover and shook him. "Grover, honey? It's time to head back to Camp. I'm starting to feel a little funny, so I'd like to head home if that's alright." Grover snapped out of it real fast when Juniper said she wasn't feeling well. Grover gave Percy a hug (Percy could've sworn that Grover sat there just _smelling_ him), and then the couple left the house, promising to IM Percy some time soon.

Percy sighed as he plopped himself onto the sofa next to Paul and Mark, Sally half asleep in the Lay-Z-Boy. Chiron and Vanessa were still talking, though they were now in the kitchen. Percy figures the two adults had been talking long enough, and he walked over to them, sitting down across from the two. "So, what exactly is the discussion for today, hm?" Vanessa and Chiron glanced at one another before Chiron spoke up.

"Vanessa here has told me a little about your... _training_. I'd like to know if it's true."

Percy turned to Vanessa, who nodded in reply. "Don't worry, Percy. He already knows of our world. He is one of the few beings from the Greek world that know of our existence. You can trust him, I assure you."

Percy waved a hand dismissively. "I already trusted him, I just had to know what _he_ knew." Percy smiled at Chiron before holding his hand out, allowing it to shift just enough for the fingers to turn blue and poison to drip from the tips of his claws. Chiron gave a small gasp before nodding.

"Cold blooded Dragon?" Percy nodded. "So an Ancient One?" Another nod. Chiron our his head in his hands. "Percy, I'm unsure whether this can go on by the gods without them knowing. You're of both worlds, not one, so this makes things difficult. I-"

"Please, Chiron. Swear to me on the Styx that you won't tell anyone until I'm ready or they've figured it out on their own, okay? Please?"

Chiron sighed but nodded. "I don't agree with you hiding, Percy, but it might be for the best. I, Chiron, swear upon the River Styx not to mention Percy is a Shifter to anyone until he is ready or someone figured it out on their own." Thunder boomed in the distance, and Chiron sighed. "As much as I'd like to continue this chat, it's late, and I have classes to teach tomorrow at the camp. It was wonderful seeing you all. Goodnight." With that, Chiron wheeled his way out of the apartment, leaving the Shifters and Annabeth alone. Sally and Paul headed for bed, and Mark fell asleep on the couch while Vanessa got the spare bedroom. Percy went and lay next to Annabeth, falling asleep to her steady heartbeat.

**It's 1:13 AM... I'm going to bed... TIME SKIP!**

Percy woke up to Annabeth shrieking, making his head bolt upright. He looked at Annabeth, who was pointing at him with her dagger. "What in the actual Hades _are_ you?!" Percy tilted his head in confusion, not sure what she meant. He looked down at himself and tried not to cringe. He had accidentally shifted during the night, and he was in a small, two feet version of himself (think of a baby dragon). He looked back at Annabeth with wide eyes as she slowly stalked towards him. "I thought... are you an actual _dragon_? I didn't think your kind even existed anymore! Drakons, sure, but not a dragon..."

Percy watched her warily, knowing she might try stabbing him. He wasn't sure if celestial bronze would hurt a regular Shifter, but he was sure it'd hurt him. He did his best to put on the biggest, most innocent eyes he could, stretching slowly and hoping to show he was harmless. "Your eyes..." Annabeth stared into them, and Percy wasn't sure what she was looking for. He tilted his head sideways, his way of asking her to continue. "They remind me of Percy's, but with... with silver in them." Percy tried not to Panic, but Annabeth stared into his eyes knowingly. "You... you wouldn't happen to _know_ Percy, would you? Is that why you're here?" Percy have out a small grin, nodding his head. "Oh my gods! You understand me?" Another nod. "Do you... do you want me to go find Percy? He's probably asleep out on the couch." Percy shook his head. "Oh. Uh... I guess you can't answer me, but can I ask you yes and no questions? Like, are you going to hurt me or try killing me?" Percy shook his head. "So I can ask you questions?" A nod.

And so for half an hour Annabeth asked Percy questions about dragons that he either nodded yes or no to, and eventually Annabeth asked a question that Percy didn't know what to say to. "Do you have a name?" Of course Percy has a name, but he couldn't tell her his. He _wouldn't _say his name. He shook his head no. _She can figure a name out for me. It can't be that bad. _"Oh, can I give you one then?" Percy nodded his head. "Hm... how about... Blue Gills!" Percy have Annabeth an incredulous look. "Uh... okay then, not that name...how about-"

A knock on the door stopped their conversation. "Annabeth? Percy? It's time to get up!" Sally said kindly from the other side.

"Oh, alright! One moment!" Annabeth looked at Percy, her mind not registering the part where sally asked for Percy to get up as well when he supposedly wasn't even in the room. "What do I say? Does she know about you?" Percy shook his head no. The fewer people knew about his interaction with Annabeth, the better. "Alright Sally! I'll be down in a minute!" Sally mumbled a reply that Annabeth didn't really register, but she smiled down at Percy. "I guess I'll see you another time... Stardust! Or maybe Moonshine?" Percy shook his head frantically when Annabeth mentioned the second name. _Sounds like alcohol..._ "So no for both names?" Percy shook his head. "You like Stardust?" Percy have half of a nod, it wasn't that bad of a name. "Awesome! Then I'll see you later Stardust!" Annabeth poked her head out the door before quickly leaving Percy's room, 'Stardust' sitting on his bed blinking owlishly. Then he realized that Annabeth was going to the kitchen, and Percy wasn't going to be asleep on the couch like she thought. His eyes went wide before he quickly transformed, looking in the mirror to make sure he didn't look too different. His horns were still only the size of his thumb nails, so he easily covered them up with his thick, shaggy hair. He had a few more prominent strands of white in his hair, but he figured it'd be fine. He quickly walked out the door and down the hall. Annabeth was staring at the couch with a confused look.

"Uh, whatcha doin Wise Girl?" He smiled when she whipped her head around, staring at him.

"Oh, well..." she seemed hesitant, and Percy put on a mock look of concern (after all, he had a pretty good idea what she wanted to talk about).

"What is it? Is everything okay?"

"Yeah. I just..." She whispered into his ear even though Mark was passed out on the couch. "I didn't know you had a _dragon_!" Percy gasped, pretending to be shocked.

"Oh my gods! I..."

Annabeth looked smug. "When were you gonna tell me about Stardust, hm?"

"Stardust?" Percy raised his eyebrows in mock surprise, a smirk tugging at the corner of his lips. Annabeth shrugged her shoulders, smiling at her unnaturally tall boyfriend.

"Yeah. I'm shocked you haven't named him already. Where'd you even get him from? And when?"

"Oh, I met him in the woods near my school at the beginning of the year. He's nice. So... Stardust... you like him?"

Annabeth smiled. "Yeah, for a monster he's surprisingly nice. Like Mrs. O'Leary and Tyson."

Percy tried not to glare at his girlfriend. "He's not a monster."

She rose her eyebrow inquisitively. "Really? I don't know why he _wouldn't_ be considered a monster." She shrugged her shoulders, walking towards the table where Sally was at. Obviously she was getting fed up with the conversation, but Percy was angry. He wasn't a _monster_! He was an Ancient. His nose twitched in agitation, letting out a small puff of frosty air before following after his girlfriend.

"Obviously he isn't a monster! He can't be Greek, right? A different... society, or religion or something maybe?" Sally stared at Percy with a question in her eyes, but he mouthed he'd explain later.

Annabeth turned and blanched at Percy. "He's a dragon, Percy. I seriously doubt he _wouldn't_ be considered a monster from wherever he came from." Sally stared at Percy with a deadpanned look that seemed to scream _I'll wring your neck later when we don't have any guests_. Percy sighed, but let out a small growl towards his girlfriend.

"What if he's a hero where he comes from, hm? Maybe he's some sort of _Ancient being_ that his society bows down to, that all look up to him?" Percy didn't usually like to gloat, but his nose was twitching so much, his hands clenching into fists at his side. He could feel his dragon instincts kicking in, his pride refusing to be torn down by someone who didn't know anything about his situation.

Annabeth noticed the way Percy was twitching his nose in irritation, the way his fists clenched and unclenched over and over again, like he was trying to bite back a retort. "Hm? So what if Stardust is some magical hero where he's from, why should I care? The Greek world is filled with magical and unexplainable things. What makes this dragon any different?"

"He just _is._" Percy sighed, running a hand through his hair, not really noticing his horns had grown a little more, that his hair had a few extra white strands. Annabeth only saw strands of gray slowly weeping into her boyfriend's hair, which confused her. Why was his hair turning _old_? She walked forwards, staring into her boyfriend's sea green eyes, his attention fully on the gray eyes only inches from his face. "Uh... what're you doing?" Percy leaned back, Annabeth only coming closer.

"Your eyes... they aren't... _normal_. What..." She stared at the specks of silver that she'd never noticed, the way his pupils just seemed _wrong_. They didn't seem _human. _

Percy rolled his eyes, kissing his girlfriend. His heart felt ready to jump out of his chest, but after months of meditating, he'd learned to control his emotions a little better. Percy concentrated on his hair and eyes as much as possible, thinking of their original colors.

When they pulled away, Annabeth blinked in confusion. Percy's hair didn't have gray in it anymore, only the streak in the front from when he held up the sky. His eyes seemed like they used to, though she still saw tiny, very tiny, fragments of silver in his eyes. Maybe she had imagined things? She sighed, simply hugging Percy. "Love you, Seaweed Brain." She pulled away, quickly grabbing the small bag off the kitchen table. "I wish I could stay and argue more, but I've gotta get going. Tell Stardust to come visit me sometime, yeah?"

"Yeah. Sure," he sighed, frowning as his girlfriend waved her hand and walked out the door. He hated lying to her, but it was for her protection. He sat down at the table, staring at his blueberry smoothie dejectedly. Vanessa and Mark has somehow made their way to the table, Paul and Sally sitting down as well.

"So, is there something you'd like to tell us, Percy?" Sally smiled innocently, but Percy knew better. That smile was fake, and Sally was actually ready to strangle him. Knowing he'd be in even more trouble if he didn't comply, Percy sighed.

"I accidentally shifted next to Annabeth last night." Everyone looked ready to yell, but he quickly cut them off as he waved his hands frantically in the air. "Hey, don't worry! She thinks I just know a two foot long dragon that's apparently named Stardust."

Mark snorted, trying not to laugh. His cheeks were all puffed up and Percy rolled his eyes. "Dude, your girlfriend named you _Stardust_? What the Hades kind of name is that? BWAHAHAHAHA!" Percy glared at his friend, which did nothing but only make Mark laugh harder. Paul snickered, a small smile gracing Vanessa's lips. Soon enough they were all laughing and pointing at Percy, who only glowered at the people he considered family. Mark sighed, wiping a tear from his face. "Ah, Percy, you poor fool. She.. pfft... it's such a girly name!" Another fit of laughter erupted around the table, the previous volume doubled.

Percy closed his eyes, nose twitching and hands clenched so tight that a few drops of blood were dripping onto the table. His hair turned white, horns growing past his head, ears growing into deep blue pointed tips, the edges of his face, as well as his shoulders, fingers and toes all turning blue, his nails growing and an iridescent blue liquid dripping into the table, which sizzled as the acidic poison melted through the wood. Everyone stared at Percy, his tail whipping violently behind him. "I _like_ the name my girlfriend gave me. Tease me again, and I'll castrate you, Mark." He opened his eyes, which flowed dangerously in the morning light that filtered through the kitchen window. Mark quickly closed his mouth, nodding.

"Y..yessir..."

Percy took a deep breath in through his nose, huffing out a large gust of chilly air that left the table and its contents frosted over. "Good. Now, if you'll all excuse me, I'm going to go shower." Percy quickly chugged his smoothie (which had somehow miraculously survived the frosty attack), then stood up, his chair scraping against the floor loudly as he slammed his cup on the table before swiftly walking down the hallway.

The four occupants at the table sat there astonished, although Vanessa seemed to be trying not to laugh. "Sensitive Little Dragon, eh? Looks like I've got something to drive him. Hehehe..."

Mark blinked a few times before speaking up. "Alright, lesson learned: under no circumstances am I to tease Percy for his dragon name." Everyone at the table besides Vanessa nodded in agreement, finishing their breakfast in a reverent silence.

**Gonna take a nap... TIME SKIP!**

Percy smiled and waved at his parents and Estelle. "Thanks for having us over! Love you mom! Bye Paul! Bye Estelle! See you guys at Christmas!" The remaining few days at Sally and Paul's had been uneventful, all of the occupants playing games or shopping or watching TV the entire extended weekend. They were all standing on the roof top, Estelle waving her fingers up and down to her brother. "Bye Bye bwother!"

Paul and Sally smiled as Percy, Mark, and Vanessa all transformed, flying back towards the school. It was Sunday night, and they had to hurry so they could get a decent amount of sleep before school and training started back up.

They managed to get back to the dorms before 10:00 PM, and the roommates waved goodbye to Vanessa as she flew towards her home.

As far as Percy was concerned, his alarm went off to soon for his liking. He groaned, but managed to drag himself out of bed. Mark was already up (like usual), and the duo left the dorms five minutes or so before class started.

"Oh gods, look Percy. It's _Cassandra_ and _Davis. Yuck_!" Mark wafted the air, turning his face away from the couple that entered Miss Flitenburg's classroom.

Cassandra, better known as Cassie, was a dove Shifter. Her bleach blonde hair hung loosely in beach waves down to her back, her large yellow eyes scanning the room. Her boyfriend Davis, who was a brunette haired boy with orange eyes was an eagle Shifter, smiled at Percy. The couple walked over, shoving poor Deborah and Daniel out of the table next to the dragon boy. "Percy, my man! What's up?" Davis smiled cockily, holding his fist out for Percy to bump it. Percy simply glared at the bird boy.

"What do you want, bird brains? If you've come to ask me to join your petty group again, then you can leave already." Percy held his hand up, blocking his view so he couldn't see the ugly snot nosed people. "Oh, and would you mind moving? Deborah and Daniel were sitting there, ya know, my _real_ friends."

Davis scoffed while Cassie gasped. "Yeah, whatever dude. Have fun hanging out with your weirdo vegan friends." The couple quickly stood up, walking to the back of the classroom where other 'populars', as Mark liked calling them, waited. Spencer and Abagail, the two people Percy had been with when he first transformed in front of everyone, had been offered a spot in the populars' group, and the fox and wolf Shifters gladly accepted. It was mainly just those four, although there were other people who'd occasionally be allowed to hang out with the populars. Abagail and Spencer were dating, and everyone could tell the poor ginger girl didn't see Spencer's manipulative habits. Poor Abagail...

Percy turned his attention to the front desk where Miss Flitenburg was at, her mouse ears and tail twitching every here and there.

Morning classes had passed by, uneventful as ever, and Mark and Percy grabbed their salads and made their way to their table, where Nancy, Deborah, and Daniel were already sitting and eating. Nancy looked up, a small blush dusting her cheeks and nose. "Hey Percy, Mark..." She stared at Mark for a moment before quickly going back to eating.

Mark didn't seem to notice the extra attention he received, though he blushed as he waved at the doe girl who sat across from him. "Oh! Uh, hey there Nancy! How were classes this morning?"

"Uh, they were fine. A little boring, but I managed. And you?"

"Oh! Percy practically beat up Cassie and Davis today! It was awesome."

Percy rolled his eyes, shoving Mark's shoulder playfully. "Oh, shaddup, nimrod. That's not how it went and you know it."

"Oh, thanks man for standing up for Deborah and I. It means a lot for us prey Shifters that a Predator like you, let alone a fricking Ancient, has our backs." Daniel held Deborah close to him like she'd suddenly disappear. The poor sandy haired bull Shifter was obviously scared she'd be shoved again.

"Oh, I don't mind. That's what friends are for, right? And stop acting like you're some weakling, Daniel. I've seen how strong you are when we go to the weight room." Daniel blushed, Deborah laughing and pretending to feel his biceps.

"So strong! Oh, baby, I'm sure if Percy didn't say anything then you would've. My sugar pie!" They pecked eachother on the lips, and Percy smiled at their cheesiness.

"Ew, gross!" Mark held his finger to his open mouth, making a gagging noise.

"Oh, shut it Mark! What are you, five?" Nancy crossed her arms, trying to glare, but you could see the smirk making its way onto her face.

All of the occupants at the table laughed, their friendship only becoming stronger as the year wore on. May 22nd came sooner than any of them would've liked, and they were all hugging one another. Nancy had a notepad out, pen ready. "Okay, so we've all agreed to come back in three weeks to hang out at the dorms for a few days, right?" Everyone nodded. "Alright... and then three weeks after that, another hang out here?" More nods of agreement. The deer Shifter snapped her notebook shut, a grin on her face as she rolled her eyes. "I still think it's rediculous that you and Percy don't have phones." Mark smiled sheepishly at his *cough* almost girlfriend. They'd only barely started dating and wanted to take things slowly, especially since they'd be separated most of the summer. "Anyways, we'd better get going. Deborah, Daniel and I all have flights back to the West Coast, so we'll see you two trouble makers soon!" Nancy pecked Mark on the cheek, waving goodbye as she caught up with the sheep and bull Shifters that had already made their way to the front gates.

Percy sighed, grabbing his two duffel bags and swinging them over his shoulder. "Alright, let's go, Mark. Here, give me your bags." Mark smiled, handing his bag to Percy before shifting into a monkey, giving his companion a thumbs up. Percy just rolled his eyes before shifting into a seven foot long dragon, using his clawed hands to hold the bags as the duo took off into the air, making their way towards camp. Percy had somehow managed to talk Mark into staying for three weeks, and if the stupid monkey boy couldn't handle anymore then he could just stay at the dorms for the remainder of summer.

Percy smiled at the wind that whipped at his face. He had asked himself before why Zeus hadn't shot him out of the sky, but figured that since he was a dragon, which was a creature of the sky, and because his Shifter side of the family wasn't exactly under the Greek influence, then Zeus either didn't care or didn't know that his nephew was flying through his territory. Percy had also managed to ask Mark why he could read Slajan so well, to which Mark stated was probably genetic, much like how demigods were hardwired to read Ancient Greek, so he must be hardwired to read Slajan as well.

After a long flight (that hour of listening to Mark ramble on about how perfect Nancy is was _torture_), the strange friends landed a good mile or so outside of the camp, shifting into their human forms. By now, Mark had learned how to get rid of his tail, so he really did look like a regular human boy (although his curly hair was still horribly long, reaching the nape of his neck). Percy looked the way he used to, although he still couldn't seem to get those specks of silver out of his eyes completely, and his horns were still there, though only as big as his thumbnail. They were easy enough to hide what with his thick, untamable hair, so with that happy note, Percy tossed Mark the bags.

"Here. _You_ can carry some stuff for a while. I'm tired and don't wanna do it right now."

"Ugh, fine. Whatever, Princess." Percy rounded on Mark, eyes glowing dangerously and the ground frosting over around him.

"What did you say?"

"Oh! Uh, nothing. Nothing at all!"

Percy had finished most all of the 'basic training', as Vanessa would say. He had learned various ways of using his ice powers, and could now use them to the point where he could determine how hard, thick, warm/cold, and far his attacks could go. Most of the time, he only huffed out small jets of frost, but sometimes he'd freeze the ground to show his dominance (stupid dragon pride). When he and Vanessa would spar, he had been taught how to create and use various weapons, ranging from swords (he was practically ambidextrous now with how he had used two swords a majority of the time) to throwing knives to spears to pitch forks. He even learned how to use a scythe, although he did so reluctantly (for the weapon reminded him of Kronos and Thanatos).

The two boys quickly made their way up the hill, Percy passing by Thalia's tree before Mark. Peleus looked at Percy knowingly, who only smiled back. _"I'll come by and explain later, alright buddy?"_

Peleus' eyes went wide. _"I... nobody's spoken to me in years! Oh, please stay, Sea Spawn! I want to talk to you!"_

Percy rolled his eyes. _"Don't worry, I'll come back and explain everything later. Promise."_

Peleus nodded as Mark passed by, and the dragon snarled at Mark (he later denied jumping and screaming, but it definitely happened).

Percy confidently strode through the fields, smiling and waving to people as greetings. Annabeth somehow managed to spot him, and raced over to Percy, kissing him on the cheek before holding hands as they made their way to the Big House. Mark grumbled to himself about third wheeling, sighing exasperatedly before stomping his feet and following the couple.

Chiron and Mr. D were sitting on the porch, a game of Pinocle being played. "Ah, Percy! How are you doing? I take it you finished school?" Chiron eyed Percy expectantly.

"Oh, yeah! Mark and I finished just this afternoon, and our three friends had to leave today so it was perfect timing for all of us. We're meeting back up at the dorms though in three weeks to hang out again. I hope that's alright."

"Yes, yes, of course Percy. Do you need to talk to me?" Chiron looked at Percy expectantly, the teenager shuffling his feet from side to side.

"Uh-"

"What happened to you? You smell... old." Everyone turned towards Mr. D, who was looking Percy up and down. "You... hm... there's something off about you, Perry. I'll figure it out soon enough, boy." Percy just scrunched up his nose. _Crazy gods,_ he thought as he followed Chiron into the Big House. Annabeth tried to follow as well, but Chiron held a hand up.

"I'm sorry, Annabeth, but I must speak with Percy alone. This is a matter of utmost importance." Annabeth stomped her foot angrily before turning on her heel, walking away. Mark stood on the porch blinking in shock before quickly slipping inside. Annabeth didn't need to know that Mark of all people got to be part of the 'private' conversation while she didn't. "So, how has your training been, Percy?"

"It's been going well. The Old Hag says I've got the basic training done, and that she might come visit camp or have me visit her so we can continue. She keeps rambling on about some prophecy older than time itself or something like that." Percy waved his hand dismissively. "But Vanessa's pretty senile and crazy, so I have a hard time believing her."

Chiron eyes widened a fraction but he didn't say anything about the subject. "So, you've got the basics down? Could you elaborate please? I haven't seen a Dragon Shifter for a vey long time, not including Vanessa who I saw at your mother's last year."

"Oh, just the simple things. I've got phenomenal senses, and I've gotten to the point where I can even sense emotions. Apparently because I'm an Ancient, I can 'bring back life from the olden times'. At least, that's how Vanessa phrases it. I still don't have a great handle on that, because I tend to create unnaturally large amounts of the stuff when I don't want to, and animals treat me like they're a miner finding the last stash of gold on Earth. I don't really understand the big deal about it, but being able to grow luminescent plants that glow even in the sunlight is really cool. Apparently us Ancients are also the only creatures that are maintaining the Fog, so I've practically become a master in that department as well." Percy shrugged his shoulders as if his Ancient abilities weren't that big of a deal. "Of course I've got my cold powers, ya know stuff like frost and snow and ice, all that cool stuff. I can even make weapons out of it, but they aren't as strong as I'd like them to be yet. I still need to work on that a little bit..." Percy had a concentrated look, ignoring Chiron's wide eyes. "Uh, Anyways, I think that those are most of the basics. Oh! Transformation-Wise, I can shift pretty easily. I'm most comfortable in my Half-State, but I can change my size when I'm in dragon form to however big or small I'd like, though there are still limits. The biggest I can get is probably to the size of a Giant, like the ones we faced during the war, and the smallest I could probably get is two feet or so." Chiron's mouth was hanging open, shock written on his face.

"You... okay, let's start with this; what do you mean by 'Half-State'?"

"Oh! Can I just show you? It's easier than explaining." Chiron nodded, and Percy shifted, his hair turning stark white, his skin tinted blue around the edges of his face, neck, shoulders, and fingers and toes. His claws were long, his ears pointed and a deep blue. His horns grew past his head, stopping at around twenty inches or so, the cuffs and beads dangling off tinkling as they clanged against one another. His tail hung limply behind him, twitching every here and there. Finally, his eyes gained more obvious glints of silver, his slotted pupils giving him a feral look as well as his large canines. Percy shuffled awkwardly on his feet, seeing as how he'd never shown his mentor anything besides his clawed hand at Thanksgiving. "Uh, this is my Half-State. It's like a relaxed form for me. I don't have to concentrate to maintain my form. If I'm in my human form when I'm sleeping, sometimes I'll accidentally shift like this or to my dragon form."

"I see." Chiron didn't say anything about the way his student looked, and Percy gave Chiron a small smile. "Now, you say you can grow to the size of a Giant? Obviously you can't show me right now, but maybe another time?"

"Yeah, of course!" Percy's grin widened, the beads dangling from his horns tilting to the side with his head movements. "So, uh, you really don't mind the way I look?" He tapped the tip of his foot against the floor gently, the noise unheard to regular mortal ears. To Percy though, the steady rhythm was loud, yet somehow comforting.

Chiron only laughed quietly. "Of course I don't mind, Percy. The way you looks has no meaning to me. It's your kind and hopeful heart that makes me care for you. Never forget that." Percy's grin widened, and he hugged his mentor, the both of them wearing faint smiles. Mark, who was sitting quietly on the couch in the corner, gave a small smile of his own.

Percy tensed, snapping his head up and towards the door. "Someone's coming, and fast." He quickly shifted, and just in time too. The door burst open, and Rachel Dare flung the door open, gasping for breath. She didn't seem to notice Percy or Mark as she made her way to Chiron, who only stared at the Oracle in confusion.

"Are you alright, Rachel?"

She paced back and forth for a moment, finally settling on tapping her foot impatiently. "I... I've been having strange dreams. Like, _really _strange. I think the Oracle took over my body. I... I painted, and... well, here. Just look." She held her iPhone out to Chiron, and the centaur gasped loudly.

"Percy, I think you'll want to see this." Rachel whipped her head around, watching with shocked eyes as Percy strode forwards and stared down at the image on the screen. It was a picture that Rachel had taken of the painting, the sun reflecting off some of it with a dangerous glint. The whole painting was used with dark, fiery colors. You could see familiar faces amongst the demigods that charged forwards, weapons drawn and armor firmly in place. Their opponents seemed to be a large group of various forest animals, who were all charging forwards with equal fierceness as the demigods. The floor seemed to be an unknown red and black blob, though if Percy were to guess, he'd assume it to be a large body of some sort. In the background, a large being made of shadows and darkness looked over the battlefield, a yellow Joker smile placed on his black face.

Standing in between the two sides was the only thing, _person_, that seemed to glow with hope and divinity. They sat criss cross, floating in the air with one arm held out in a stopping gesture to the charging sides. His body seemed to glow blue and silver, his white hair reflecting calmly amidst the incoming battle. Tears leaked down his face, though his hair covered most of it so his face was unidentifiable. Percy knew exactly who the figure was. It was _himself. _

Percy stumbled away from the painting, dropping the phone onto the table as he scooted himself into the corner and clutching his knees to his chest. "No. Not another war. We... we just finished one! I... I was starting to get comfortable for once..." Percy saw the pitying looks sent his way from the three other occupants of the room, two sets of soft brown eyes and one pair of emerald green eyes staring at him. Percy took a deep breath, nodding to Chiron. He turned towards Rachel, staring intently at her. "What do I need to do to prevent this?"

Rachel's eyes glowed green, a threatening smile gracing her lips.

**_"The Ancient One will die. _**

**_A close friend's lie,_**

**_Two worlds will meet,_**

**_And Him they must defeat. _**

**_For if he shall reign,_**

**_Then nothing will remain." _**

Rachel's body went slack, and Percy caught her just before she crumpled to the floor. He gingerly set her down on the couch next to Mark, who's eyes were filled with fear. "Who... who's _he_? And... you're the only Ancient One I can think of, Percy. You... you can't _die_. You're... you're one of the only friends I have." Tears threatened to spill over, and Percy gently hugged the monkey Shifter.

"Hey, it's alright. We'll figure it out. Don't worry. My death was apparently supposed to happen long ago, but I'm still here, aren't I? It'll be alright, m'kay?" Percy smiled kindly at Mark before turning to Chiron. "She said 'a close friend's lie'... you don't think she meant my secret about the Shifter world, do you? 'Two worlds will meet'... she said _will_, meaning that even if I don't want the demigod and Shifter worlds to come together, I don't think we have a choice." Percy sighed, sitting down heavily in a chair as some of the ping pong table frosted over, showing his frustration. "I only just got back, too! Ugh, I... What do you think Chiron?"

Chiron had been quiet up until now, his head nodding thoughtfully. "I have to agree with you, Percy. I'm not sure what exactly is going to happen, but I know one thing for sure; whoever 'He' is, He intends on turning the Shifters against the Demigods, leaving you as the only buffer. I can guarantee that blood will be shed that way. We must take action. Another war is looming overhead, and I'm afraid you must go discuss things with the gods." Percy looked ready to protest, but Chiron held a hand up. "Percy, you and I both know it's for the best. Please, just listen. I'll call the gods and inform them that a mandatory meeting is required immediately. I doubt they'll accept immediately. The earliest I think they'll accept is by the end of next week. We can only hope that they'll be able to take action quickly so that we may begin bringing our cultures together. Now why don't you and Mark go head to the pavilion; I'm sure dinner will be served in an hour or so." Percy nodded silently, noticing the way his mentor seemed to age within seconds.

"Alright, Chiron. Keep me updated." Percy received a small nod as he dragged the silent Son of Hermes out of The Big House. Mark followed the Son of Poseidon to the pavilion, the duo sitting down at Percy's table. There were only five or six other demigods sitting in the pavilion, casting glances at Percy every here and there.

Not long after they'd arrived, Annabeth seemed to appear out of nowhere as she shoved Mark to the side so she sat directly across from her boyfriend. Mark blinked before standing up and walking around the table, plopping down on the bench next to his best friend. "So? How'd things go? What did Chiron talk to you about?"

Percy's nose twitched in irritation, though Annabeth didn't know what it really meant. Mark however realized that Percy was beyond frustrated; Percy's twitchy nose had become a habit of his when he was ready to blow a fuse. "I'm not allowed to say."

"Did you swear on the Styx?"

Percy's nose scrunched up even more, his hands clenched in fists under the table. "No, I didn't," he practically growled out. Mark tried nudging Percy when he noticed the frost slowly creeping out from underneath the Dragon Shifter, but the Son of Poseidon didn't acknowledge his friend.

"Then why can't you tell me? You didn't swear so there shouldn't be any problem."

"I said that I can't tell anybody, Annabeth, so just drop it. Please." Annabeth scrunched up her eyebrows but nodded anyways, deciding to change subjects.

"So, hows Stardust? I haven't seen him besides that one time at Thanksgiving. I miss the little guy."

Percy's fists slowly unclenched, the frost receding into nothingness. "Oh. Uh, he's doing alright. I haven't seen him in a while, either. Maybe he'll visit sometime, hn?"

"Yeah, maybe."

They all sat silently, waiting for something to happen. A conch shell blew loudly, and everyone whipped their heads to the woods. It wasn't their conch; no, the Hunters of Artemis we're announcing their arrival.

Percy stood up, racing towards the woods. Maybe he could speed up things, make the meeting happen sooner. He noticed Chiron galloping at a fast pace as well, the two nodding at one another.

Silver parkas emerged throughout the tree line, Percy quickly picking Thalia and Artemis out of the bunch. Percy stopped in front of Thalia, giving her a quick fist bump before walking past her and kneeling before Artemis. Many gasps were let out from campers and hunters alike; they had never seen Percy bow before the Goddesss of the Hunt. Artemis rose an eyebrow in shock, but didn't say anything. "My Lady, I have important information that I _must_ discuss with you as soon as you are available." Chiron, who was bowing next to him, nodded with wide eyes. The goddess caught Chiron's look of urgency and she nodded.

"Very well, Perseus. Let us find somewhere private to discuss this... information you have. Thalia! Come. Hunters, go to the cabin and settle in." Percy looked pleadingly at Chiron who shook his head. Thalia was the lieutenant, and there was no way Artemis wouldn't have her there. No matter what Percy's connection, this was business, not a reunion for the cousins. The four walked towards the Big House, Chiron scanning the crowd.

"Mark! Come along, you're involved in this conversation. Everyone else, go about your previous activities please!" Annabeth stormed up to the centaur, and he shook his head. "I'm sorry, child, but this is godly business that you cannot listen to. Not yet, at least. Go."

Annabeth shook her head. "No. I'm Percy's girlfriend, and the Head counselor of the Athena cabin. Whatever his happening, I deserve to know. In case you've forgotten, I'm a Savior if Olympus as well. Why is Mark going? What has he done?"

"He's involved, Annabeth. You, I'm afraid, are _not_. You've done many things of importance, but I cannot allow you to join this meeting. It's far above you, even above me. This is a matter for the gods." Annabeth huffed, turning on her heel and storming off.

Percy tried to ignore her instead of chasing after her. _She isn't involved, Percy. Don't get her involved unless absolutely necessary_, his mind told him, and he begrudgingly walked back into the Big House. Rachel had left and gone to her cave after waking up from the Hunter's horn, so it was just Chiron, Percy, Mark, Artemis, and Thalia in the room.

Percy took a shaky breath inwards as Chiron explained to Artemis how dire the situation was. Thalia noticed her cousin's distress, but she remained silent. "Lady Artemis, today a prophecy was given, and our Oracle painted something... disturbing, to say the least. It... it involved _the Shifters_, my Lady." Chiron cringed at how Artemis glared at him.

"I don't understand. This is a prophecy for Greeks, _not_ for the Shifters."

"Um, actually..." Percy gingerly lifted his hand up as how all of the occupants whipped their heads towards him. He was quiet, his feet shuffling on the ground. "Vanessa, a daughter of Hephaestus and the previous Ancient said that there was a prophecy coming, and... yeah..." Percy wilted under the Goddesse's cold gaze. _Keep it together, Percy. Keep it cool, keep it cool..._ he chanted in his head like a mantra.

Artemis turned her head towards the centaur, though her eyes were still focused on Percy. "I don't understand why _Vanessa_ of all people would have a prophecy. And what makes Perseus and this _boy_ apart of the situation? Wait... you said _previous_ Ancient, correct Perseus?" Said boy nodded, his feet shuffling. "Then..." she gasped, staring intently at Percy, noticing his suddenly overpowering aura, and the way his demigod scent had diminished to practically nothing. "Oh my gods. You... you aren't..." she pointed wildly at Percy before turning back to Chiron. "He isn't... he didn't _replace_ Vanessa, did he?" Chiron gave a small nod, the Goddess sitting on the couch heavily and changing into a twenty year old version of herself. "Oh my gods. Oh. My. _Gods." _Thalia looked at all of the occupants in the room, confusion written on her face. She opened her mouth, only to watch her mistress stand to her feet, looking at Percy. "The prophecy, what did it say?"

Percy took a deep breath, his feet shaking. _"The Ancient One will die. A close friend's lie, Two worlds will meet, And He they must defeat. For if He shall reign, Then nothing will remain."_ Percy stared at the Goddess before him, still frightened she'd kill him for learning what he was. After all, a dragon pelt would make a very good rug...

Thalia stared back and forth between Artemis and Percy, finally getting fed up. "Alright, somebody better explain things to me _right_ now! What the Hades is a Shifter? What does it mean, 'A close friend's lie'? I want answers." Percy cringed under her harsh stare, small amounts of frost slowly spreading out around him across the wood floor. Thalia gave a small gasp, and Percy looked down, the frost only spreading even more.

"Oh my gods. Oh my gods. Oh my gods. This can't be happening. Di immortales, this _can't _be happening!" Percy let out a dry chuckle as he began pacing the room, the frost only spreading further with his movement. "This is all some horrible nightmare. I'll wake up in my dorm, Mark will be trying to wake me up, and, and..."

"Percy!" Said boy whipped his head towards Mark, who had remained silent throughout the whole ordeal. He gave a gentle and reassuring smile. "Hey, buddy. I think... I think it's time." At Percy's panicked look, Mark moved his hands up and down. "Hey, remember what Vanessa taught you? Breathe in through your nose-"

"And out through my mouth." Percy and Mark stood still, doing breathing exercises while the occupants watched shocked. Never had they seen Percy so... _scared_ before. After a few moments, Percy spoke once more. "This is fine. This is great, actually. I can just tell you two-" he motioned towards Thalia and Artemis- "and you can just tell everyone else!" He had a frantic look in his eyes, almost hysterical.

"Hey, Percy, just... just breathe, dude. As much as you don't wanna do this, you need to. And before you blow up on me-" he added in when Percy looked ready to transform- "remember that there are _people_ in here. It isn't just you, and it's not just me either. As much as you don't want to admit it, this is bigger than the both of us, and _you're_ the leader, as much as you'd like to deny it. So, take a deep breath and _calmly_ explain to everyone what happened to you last year, alright?" Mark looked at Percy, who now held a determined look. He was still skittish, but he was ready.

Percy turned his attention back to Artemis and Thalia, eyes glancing between the two. "Last year, only a few weeks into school, I turned eighteen years old. Ah! No interruptions, please. Thank you Thalia. Anyways, I woke up the day after my birthday feeling like I'd been squished into a flimsy cardboard box, my head casually sticking out of my doorframe to my room. Some people greeted me, and I learned that my mom, as well as Paul, were something called Shifters. Basically, a long time ago, there were these half humans. Their soul would pick an animal, and that's what they'd be." Thalia still had a confused look on her face, so Percy explained further. "Here's an example. Let's say..." he glanced at Mark before looking back at Thalia. "Let's say your soul chooses a monkey as your animal. You can basically shapeshift into a monkey whenever you'd like. You can even transform into a Half-State, where you're sorta in between your human form and your animal form. Make sense?" Thalia nodded while Mark glowered. A small grin made its way onto Percy's face, the frost that had remained on the floor receding a little. "Anyways, I woke up and figured out that I was a Shifter, just like my mom. She's a wolf, in case you were wondering. So, Instructor Flagwitz, the main lady running the Shifter's society, brought me to their program, where I was trained by the last remaining Ancient and I went to school."

"Uh, alright, got the basics. Quick question; what's an Ancient, and what's your Shifter form?" Thalia was handling this a lot better than Percy expected. He knew when she saw his Half-State that she'd freak out, though.

"Oh, well an Ancient is basically a mythical being, ya know, dragons, Pegasi, Unicorns, all that fun stuff. As for your question..." Percy looked at Chiron and received a nod. "It's probably best for me to just show you my Half-State. You can probably guess from there." Percy took a deep breath, closing his eyes and pretending that Thalia and Artemis weren't staring at him, that it was just Mark trying to help him get ready for classes. He could feel himself shift, could hear the gasps, but he waited until that comfortable feeling settled over him like a warm blanket. He opened his eyes, staring at the floor and tapping his feet against one another.

"Oh my gods..." Thalia walked forwards, gently circling her cousin. She even reached out, letting her hands run underneath the jewelry that hung from his horns. Percy flinched, and frost spread across the floor, climbing onto Thalia's boots. "You... what... what _are _you?" Percy gave a small flinch again, the frost on the floor spreading even more.

"I... I'm an-"

"An Ancient One. I understand. A cold blooded dragon, I take it?" Artemis inclined her head, which shocked the occupants of the room. The goddess began walking around Percy, doing an investigation of her own. "I haven't seen one of your kind in many moons, Perseus. You are very blessed."

Percy tried not to snap at the goddess that he was _not _blessed, that his whole life was cursed, but he refrained himself. His claws dripped small drops of glowing blue poison onto the floor, burning small holes through the wood. "Oh my gods, Perce. You're... you're a dragon!" Percy met his cousin's eyes, smiling widely at her large grin adorning her face. "That's incredible! I don't know why you were so freaked out."

"Oh, I don't know, maybe because the Hunters of Artemis _Hunt _beings like me, and maybe because you'd reject me..." he rolled his eyes, Thalia punching him in the arm.

"Oh, shut it, Kelp Head. You're fine the way you are. The fact that you're a little different doesn't bother me." She turned towards Mark. "So, I take it you're a shifter? What are you?" Mark sighed.

"...monkey..." he mumbled quietly, eliciting laughs from around the room.

Artemis drew the attention away from the poor child. "Perseus, can you transform?"

"Oh, yeah sure! How big?" He cocked his head to the side, the jewelry chinking as they tilted with his snowy white hair.

"Oh, I didn't know you could change your size."

"Yeah, it's not that big of a deal. The smallest I can get is probably two feet or so, and my natural form is probably as big as one of the Giants from the war." He shrugged his shoulders like what he said wasn't that big of a deal.

The two hunters gaped at him, Artemis eventually snapping out of it. "Oh, well can you shift into your smaller version, please? I'd like to assess you, if you don't mind." Percy nodded, allowing himself to shrink before jumping up onto the table, sitting with his head held high.

"Oh my gods! You're so small!" Thalia gave a small squeal of delight, walking forwards and scratching Percy behind one of his pointed and scaly ears. Percy leaned into her touch, ignoring the small laughs that escaped from Mark and Chiron. Even Artemis had a smile on her face, but she walked forwards and began looking at his teeth, claws, tail, horns, assessing pretty much everything about him.

"Hold your wings out." He smiled as he let his wings go as wide as possible, Thalia snickering at her cousin's arrogance. "Ah, good size. The small silver talons on the tips of your wings will be useful in battle."

Percy gave a blanched look at Artemis before climbing up onto Thalia's back, laying down. "I think that's enough for now, thanks." He received some funny looks, but ignored them. "Let's go, Thalia. I'm hungry." He let out a small puff of cold air that made the Daughter of Zeus shiver a little.

"Perce, I'm pretty sure I can't just walk out with a dragon casually sleeping on my shoulders."

"Oh, it'll be fine. You can just say you found me in the woods, or that I was some dragon Chiron needed you to babysit."

"Ugh, whatever. Why don't you just change back?"

"Don't wanna. Too much work. Plus, why would I wanna walk when I can sleep?" His warm scales made Thalia laugh before shaking her head, walking out of the Big House. "If anyone asks where I'm at, just say Chiron had business for me to deal with in the Big House and that I'm to be left alone."

The duo laughed, Mark trailing behind. Artemis and Chiron remained, discussing when the soonest meeting could be held. "Don't worry, I'll have a meeting scheduled before next Saturday," the goddess said before vanishing in a flash of silver light, leaving the centaur to walk to dinner by himself.

**Got waterpolo practice... be back soon... TIME SKIP!**

Thalia strode casually into the pavilion, ignoring the looks cast her and Percy's way. Percy had fallen asleep almost instantly, the constant rocking of Thalia's footsteps lulling him to sleep. The pavilion seemed to go silent, Thalia making her way to the Hunters' table. She sat down next to one of their newer girls, Tori. Her hair was dyed a light lavender, her eyes a soft gray color. She let out a small gasp when her eyes landed on Percy, effectively waking him up. He cracked an eye at her, recognition flashing across his face. He gave her a look, and Tori nodded. Thalia caught the look; she'd have to talk with the newbie later.

"Oh my gods! Stardust!" Thalia twisted in her seat, staring in confusion as Annabeth lunged for Percy, Thalia holding a hand up to stop the girl.

"I'm sorry, 'Stardust'? Who the Hades is that?"

"Oh, it's the dragon on your shoulders! I'm surprised Percy didn't tell you."

Thalia tried to hold in the laugh that threatened to spill out, her shoulders shaking violently. "Oh, really now? _Stardust_? Don't you think that's a little bit of a girly name?" Thalia stared at Percy intently, who was glaring intently at the girl he laid upon. He let out a puff of air, freezing the tips of her black and dyed electric blue hair. "Why not something manly like Frostbite, hm?" Percy gave her a small nod of approval, though Annabeth didn't notice.

"Oh, please! Like that's a good name for my wittle baby Stardust!" She rubbed her face against Percy's head, petting the little dragon.

Thalia rolled her eyes. "Oh, sure. Cuz _Stardust_ sounds like a manly dragon name." She scoffed, holding her fork full of steak and potatoes up for Percy to much on. "Anyways, Percy asked me to watch the little fella while he was finishing up in the Big House. As far as I'm concerned, he's named Frostbite."

Annabeth huffed loudly, crossing her arms in annoyance. "Fine. How about a deal, hm? After dinner, we'll go have a simple, fair spar. If I win, I name him whatever I'd like. If you win, you can name him whatever you want. Deal?" Annabeth held her hand out, a feral grin spreading across her face.

"Alright, Annie. You got yourself a deal." Thalia shook the blonde's hand, both glaring at one another in a friendly battle.

"See you after dinner, Thals. And don't call me Annie!" She turned on her heel, walking back to the Athena table.

Thalia rolled her eyes, turning to Percy. "I like Frostbite _much_ better. Seriously, dude, you let her name you _Stardust_? Where's your sense of pride?" Percy glowered at her, muttering into her ear so she could just barely hear him.

"Hey, if Jason or Artemis came up to you while you couldn't say anything and gave you a rediculous name, you'd stick with it. So shuddup." His nose twitched, and Thalia laughed at him.

"Oh, whatever, Pe-er, Frostbite. I think my name for you is _much_ cooler than hers." Percy sighed, but nodded his head nonetheless. Percy looked at Tori, the 15 year old quickly whipping her head away from him and back to her plate. "So, how do you know eachother?" Thalia muttered under her breath quietly, leaning towards Percy (not that she needed to. He could hear her fine).

"She's a Shifter. I went to school with her." Thalia looked at Tori, a little shocked.

"What animal?"

"Owl. I wouldn't be surprised if Athena blessed her, what with how smart she is."

Thalia nodded, noticing the girl's large gray eyes, the way her face had a pale complexion. "I can see it a little now. How come no one notices these things? On the way to the pavilion, it was like nobody saw you."

"The Fog. It's like the Mist, but it's for the Shifter world instead. Ancients are the only Shifters that can truly control it. In fact, if there weren't an Ancient around, then the Fog would cease to exist. That's just a fraction of how much influence Ancients have in the Shifter world." Percy snatched a piece of Thalia's steak, munching on the meat happily.

"So what, you just covered yourself in this Fog or whatever?"

"Yeah. Didn't need people freaking out. I figured I'd be fine in the pavilion because everyone would be gathered here, and you wouldn't have to explain multiple times why I'm here." Thalia nodded thoughtfully, resuming in eating her meal.

Every here and there, some nymphs would stop and stare. One even dropped her platter, mumbling "An Ancient..." before rushing off, not coming back for the remainder of the meal.

Soon enough, Annabeth and Thalia were standing across from one another, drakon bone sword and spear drawn, ready for battle-er, a _spar_. Percy had been placed in Tori's lap, the girl mumbling small words to Percy every here and there, him replying back. Percy had stood up for Tori a few times throughout the school year, and so even though the two weren't great friends, they had eachother's backs. They mumbled to one another in Slajan, small and mischievous smiles spread across their faces.

"Alright, ready? I'll be the judge! Let's get this started already! Annabeth, ready?" She nodded to Clarisse, her gaze never leaving Thalia's face. "Thalia, are you ready?"

"Yes."

"Alrighty then! BEGIN!" Clarisse bolted over to where Chris sat, the couple staring at the battle excitedly. The arena was shockingly full, seeing as how it would be a good fight over a rediculous purpose. Nobody seemed to notice Percy was missing, but the little dragon only smiled. _Makes this all the more fun..._ he thought gleefully. _I'll watch for a few minutes, then put my plan into action..._

Thalia and Annabeth weaves in and out of eachother, dancing in a flurry of movements. Strike, parry, sidestep, etcetera. After a few minutes of sparring, Thalia seemed to be getting annoyed. Lightning began moving along her spear, making Annabeth step back and glare. "I thought we had agreed to have a fair fight."

"We are. You never said I couldn't use my powers. It's not my fault you didn't get any super awesome abilities." She shrugged, smiling as Annabeth charged angrily. Now was her time to strike... aaannnddd...NOW!

A large gust of freezing wind blew across the arena, turning the ground into a thick sheet of pure ice. It was practically a skating rink now, and those sitting in the stands had a thin layer of snow covering them as it fell casually from the sky. Everyone turned and stared at the small dragon who sat cockily in Tori's lap, the girl the only one that seemed unaffected by Percy's actions. Tori sighed, holding up a sign. The two girls who had previously been battling had ended up falling on their rumps, staring at Percy in shock. Thalia squinted at the sign.

"Uh... I can't read that." Tori blinked before letting out a soft oh.

"Sorry, it's Slajan. Uh, your dragon wants to be named Maelstrom." She sighed, looking at the little dragon in her lap that nodded his head.

"And how do you know this? Last I checked, dragons can't talk." Annabeth looked smugly at the Hunter, ignoring the tiny fits of giggles Thalia, Mark (who sat behind Tori), and Tori released.

Tori's face turned serious. "He didn't tell me. He wrote it." She pointed to the neatly scrawled scribbles, which seemed to be slowly melting away. She looked at the sign with disgust, throwing the piece of paper onto the floor as whatever 'Maelstrom' had used to scrawl his name into the paper melted through the ice like hot butter on a frying pan. Everyone just stared at the paper, and Tori shrugged. "He used his poisonous, and highly acidic, talons to write his name."

Thalia and Annabeth looked intently st the small dragon, then back to Tori. "And how can you read that?" Annabeth pointed towards the melted, glowing fluid that seemed to still be eating away at the earth.

"Oh! It's Slajan, a very old language. Don't ask me how or why I know the language, I just do." The girl gave a firm look that told the others not to ask any questions.

Thalia sighed. "I _guess_ Maelstrom is a decent name. You sure?" She stared at Percy, who nodded his head firmly. "You cool with that, Annie?"

"Yeah, I guess. And I told you to stop calling me that already!" She punched her friend in the arm, both girls laughing.

A heavy weight could be felt in the air, and everyone closed their eyes, knowing the godly aura in the air. A flash of light went off in the arena, and Artemis (who had disappeared after talking to Chiron) stared intently at the crowd around her, eyes landing on Thalia. "Where is Perseus?"

"Oh, uh..." Artemis looked around, her silver orbs greeting Percy's green and silver wide eyes. He shook his head, and Artemis turned back to Thalia who spoke up. "Percy's still at the Big House. I can take him to you, if you'd like... I was just busy watching Percy's dragon... Maelstrom..."

"Ah. Well then, I'll take you..." she practically yanked Percy from Tori's lap, glaring at him harshly, "and you." The goddess gripped Thalia's wrist, leaving no room for protest as the trio flashed into the Big House, Chiron's wheelchair on the brink of tipping over from how startled he was at the sudden appearance. The goddess didn't even seem to acknowledge the two demigods she'd snatched, instead looking at Chiron with a pointed look. "The meeting will be held at Sunset in two days time. The gods demand Vanessa be there, as well as anyone else who knows of both gods and Shifters." She gave Percy and Thalia a quick glance before turning back to Chiron. "I suggest you make sure everything is orderly. Good luck, centaur."

Chiron bowed his head deeply as Artemis flashed away once more. Percy sighed, shifting back to his human form. "Whelp, I'd better go get Vanessa. I'll have to ask the Old Fart if anyone else knows about the Greeks..." Percy sighed loudly, walking towards the door.

"Percy?" He turned towards Chiron, an eyebrow raised.

"Yes?"

"Take Thalia with you. And a Pegasus or two as well, in case there are extra Shifters that need rides." Thalia nodded, Percy giving a small puff of chilly air before reluctantly agreeing.

"I'm going to leave tonight. Hopefully I'll be back before noon tomorrow. Thalia, I hope you have everything you need. We're going to go grab Mark and head to the school. We can spend the night in my dorm and go talk to Vanessa when Mark wakes up. He's an early riser," Percy added helpfully, waving goodbye to Chiron as the two cousins made their way towards the stables. "I'll get Mark and the Pegasi ready, you go talk to Artemis and the Hunters to inform them you'll be gone for half a day or so, alright?"

Thalia nodded, and Percy sent a small burst of cold air release from him, almost like a ripple in the sky. It was something he and Mark had come up with after Percy had shown Mark what he'd learned from Vanessa for that day of training, and the monkey boy declared that the two needed a call, in case something came up. "I can just scream," was Mark's response when Percy stayed that he couldn't release a wave of freezing air that sent shivers down your spine on a hot summer day.

Percy gave a small laugh at the memory, and didn't notice Mark until he was only a few yards away. "Hey! What's going on, Perce?" Mark waved his arms in the air frantically, and Percy flinched at the sudden noise. He _really_ needed to learn how to not space out; having dragon senses made it difficult for you to ignore things, but if you were spacing out it was scary. It was like having a thick, warm blanket ripped from your body while on Mount Everest; it left you feeling cold, naked, and _scared_.

"Oh, well, we've gotta go talk to Vanessa. I figured we could just go spend the night at the dorms and get her in the morning, that way we don't have to wake up as early as usual. And don't give me the whole 'I'd already be up anyways!' crap, cause I don't wanna hear it. Some people actually _like_ to sleep in."

"Whatever, dude. We leaving now?"

Percy shrugged. "Probably ten or fifteen minutes. Why, need to grab something before we go?"

Mark shook his head. "Nah, I've still got most of my stuff in the dorm room. I do _live_ there, after all." Percy nodded in understanding. The school was a lot like New Rome; you attended school there (high school, college, even preschool, you name it they have it), you lived there, it was a sanctuary. Shifters could live in the dorms up until they got a job in the real world and were on their feet. Some Shifters just freeloaded off the institution, but they had to help pay for their rooms.

Percy waved his arm at Mark. "I live there most of the year, too, nimrod. Although..."

Mark sighed loudly. "Yeah, Yeah, something about New Rome and college with your girlfriend, some happily ever after, yada yada yada, whatever. I've heard it millions of times, dude. As long as you promise to come visit every here and there, then we're good, bro."

Percy gave a small nod. Percy planned on going to New Rome with Annabeth when high school was over, which it now was. And he wanted to go, he really did, but a small part of him wanted to just stay at the Shifter's school, where he could live in peace without having to worry about monsters ever attacking him again. A small part of him wanted to just _leave_ the demigod world behind, but the rest of him rationalized that those thoughts were selfish, that he could never do that to his friends. His fatal flaw was loyalty... was it not? The more Percy thought about it, the more he realized he'd become rather arrogant over the school year, his dragon instincts screaming at him to be prideful, but he had always been loyal. He'd still die for a friend, so his flaw was definitely still loyalty...he just had a tad of pride now.

Percy shook his head. _Of course I'm still me, right? Right. Yeah, I'm still loyal. _Percy looked at Mark, the boy noticing the way they'd stopped walking and how Percy was just _staring_ at him. "Uh... What?"

"Oh, uh, well..." Percy rubbed the back of his head sheepishly. "I was just wondering... what do you think my flaw is?"

Mark just blinked. "Huh?"

The Son of Poseidon just sighed in exasperation. "Ya know, my fatal flaw? Like hubris, loyalty, stuff like that."

Mark held his hand under his chin, looking up at the stars. "Hmm... I'd have to say that you're loyal to a fault. You're always there for your friends, even for people that you've barely just met. Like Tori, the owl girl? You had barely said hello to her, and when Davis tried tripping her you punched him in the stomach. Had to clean the bathrooms for a week, too. There's no way I'd _ever _help some random girl I'd just met unless I thought she was hot, and even then cleaning the bathrooms for a week wouldn't be worth it. I don't get you, dude."

Percy gave a small sigh of relief. He'd much rather be too loyal than too prideful. He didn't wanna end up like his Uncle Z...

The duo quickly made their way to the stables, walking in like they owned the place (which Percy sorta did, what with his connection to the occupants inside). Most of the Pegasi were sleeping, though a few who were munching on hay would give small greetings to 'their lord'. Percy ignored most of them, heading to the back wall, Blackjack sleeping comfortably in his large, no door stall.

"Hey, Perce? What exactly are we doing here? I thought we were gonna just shift and fly outta here." Mark jerked his thumb towards the door, not liking the way the pegasi's eyes would watch him.

"Oh, I totally forgot to tell you, but Chiron's having Thalia come with us. She's probably going to want to fly with me, what with her being afraid of heights and everything, and as much as I like letting loose and growing to my full size, I'd attract too much attention. Even I'd struggle to manipulate the Fog to hide my large form. Plus, it'll be quicker if we have more rides for whoever's in the council at Headquarters and knows about the Greek world."

"Uh..." Mark just blinked at Percy. "And exactly _why_ are we getting all of these important Shifters together?"

Percy slapped his forehead, rolling his eyes at his friend. "The gods scheduled a meeting the day after tomorrow at sundown. We need to go and gather the Shifters that know about the Greek world so we can all come to a decision and handle the situation _properly, _whatever that's supposed to mean. That's what Chiron said, so I'm going with it. Anyways, I'm going to assume that not all the council can fly, so we're gonna grab a few friends to help out."

Mark nodded, his hands in his pockets while his thumbs hung outside the pockets, thumping against his legs rhythmically. Percy rolled his eyes; Mark's nervous ticks were so obvious when you had heightened senses. "What is it?"

"Oh, uh... well, I was just hoping that you could take both Thalia and I? I... horses scare me..." many of the Pegasi that we're awake turned and glared at the monkey boy, who let out a yelp and hid behind Percy. The Son of Poseidon cringed at the long string of curses flowing into his mind from the two of three Pegasi. "So... can I? Please?" Percy turned his head a little towards his friend, staring intently into Mark's frightened face.

"Yeah, sure dude. I don't mind, I guess." Percy gingerly wiped Mark's hands off his arm, like dust had just been on his Hollister shirt. "Anyways, I'm gonna wake up Blackjack, Guido and Porkpie, alright?" Mark nodded, his arms wrapped firmly around himself as he glanced at the Pegasi wearily. Percy gently reached his hand towards Blackjack, his hand only a few inches from his face. "Blackjack? Hey, buddy. Wakey, wakey..." Percy's palm glowed with a dim, blue light that rested on the Pegasus' head. Instantly, his large eyes shot open, his head raising frantically. "Hey! Woah! Calm down, Blackjack, just calm down. It's just me, buddy. It's just me."

_"B...Boss?"_

"Yeah, it's me. And I told you millions of times _not_ to call me that!"

The Pegasus looked Percy up and down with a critical eye. _"I just... What was that feeling? When you touched me?"_ Percy gave a small sigh.

"Don't worry, it's just some Ancient trick I learned. I'll tell you all about what's been going on the past year, but for now can you wake up Guido and Porkpie for me? We need to head out." Blackjack nodded, gingerly placing his hoof onto Guido's stomach.

_"Hey! Get up!"_ He'd gently nudge the Pegasus until Guido woke up, and then the midnight black creature did the same to Porkpie.

Percy had barely finished convincing Guido and Porkpie to put saddles on when Thalia walked into the stables, whipping out her hand to show Percy a thumbs up. "I'm good to go. So, how're we getting there again?" She eyed the Pegasi nervously, her feet shuffling from side to side.

Percy rolled his eyes. "Don't worry, the Pegasi are coming along with us so they can get any extra Shifters that can't fly." Thalia sighed in relief, and Percy grinned mischievously. "Although, we're still going to fly." Thalia's head whipped up to look at Percy, eyes filled with horror. A small laugh escaped the son of Poseidon. "Oh, don't worry, I'll be the one flying. You and Mark will be riding on my back. Porkpie and Guido are making me carry their saddles there though, since they won't be carrying anybody to the institute. Anyways, c'mon, let's go." Mark strode after Percy, the three Pegasi following as well, leaving Thalia to blink in shock and fear for the flight ahead.

_"Hey, Boss?"_

Percy sighed. "Yes, Blackjack?"

They walked into a clearing that was over the hill and just outside of the Camp's borders, hopefully out of sight from most of the campers who were at the campfire. _"Oh, well I was just wondering what you meant when you said _you'd_ be flying there. Are you... did you get a different Pegasus?"_

Percy gave a small smile towards Blackjack, gingerly running his fingers through the silky smooth black mane. "No, I could never replace you. You're one of my best friends, after all. I... I, uh... well, you see-"

"Oh, shut up already and let's just go! I'm tired and wanna go to sleep!" Mark whined loudly, slouching as he stumbled past the waiting Pegasi, as well as Thalia (who had suddenly appeared from the stables only moments ago).

Percy laughed and Blackjack stomped his hoof angrily. "Alright you guys, let's get going. Blackjack, Guido, Porkpie, _don't _freak out. It's not that big of a deal, okay? Just... you can ask questions on the way there." Percy held the two saddles in his hands as he shifted into a twelve foot version of his dragon form, a sigh escaping his lips at feeling so free. After all, it's extremely difficult to contain a Giant's worth of a dragon in a small human body 24/7. The Pegasi let out loud whinnies of fright, Thalia gasping as well. Percy looked down at his friends. Mark had already shifted, climbing up onto Percy's back. "Well? You coming?"

Thalia snapped out of her stupor, a shiver running down her spine. "Ugh... I'm _really_ gonna hate this. It's fine, it'll be great..." she mumbled quietly as she gingerly walked towards Percy like he might bite her head off. "Nice... nice Percy... just... uh..."

Percy rolled his eyes, a small huff of frost and ice freezing the ends of Thalia's hair, eyebrows and nose. "Just shut up already and let's go." He dropped one of the saddles from his clawed hands, picking Thalia up and setting her down on the nape of his neck like she was an egg. "Don't worry. I won't drop you."

"Promise?" Thalia asked, shaking like a leaf as she clutched onto the large and dark blue protruding scales that ran along his spine.

"Promise." Percy said it so quietly that Mark barely heard it, but it was a soft and comforting thought that helped calm the Daughter of Zeus. Percy took a glance at the Pegasi. "Sorry I didn't tell you sooner, Blackjack. I just barely got back, and-"

_"An Ancient One. Boss, I..." _

Now, Blackjack had never been one to be respectful or bow down to anyone, but he did for Percy. Guido and Porkpie followed the dark Pegasus' actions. _"Boss, you... you don't understand how important you are. You... wow. Just... _wow_."_ Guido and Porkpie nodded along frantically as well, and Percy just tilted his head in confusion.

"Uh... Alright? Let's just... let's go already. And how many times have I told you _not_ to call me Boss?" Percy took a small glance around before taking to the skies, smiling as he clapped his large, leathery and smooth blue wings. Thalia let out a horrified screech, but once Percy leveled out and sailed along the wind currents, the Lieutenant of Artemis seemed to relax her deadly grip on her cousin. Percy held the saddles in his large, scaly hands like they were plastic buckets filled halfway with salt water from the beach. Mark sat atop Percy's head, his tail curled comfortably around one of his silver horns as he hung off of the large dragon and dozed off. Percy hummed quietly to Taylor Swift, specifically her new song 'You need to calm down'. The Son of Poseidon thought of Will and Nico, a small smile gracing his dragon face. He'd never admit it, but he was such a fan girl when it came to cute couples and love. Once again, just like his shopping addiction, if the Aphrodite cabin ever found out...

Thalia listened to Percy's deep humming quietly, the vibrations of his vocal chords under her calming her nerves and making her feel almost... _relaxed_. She gingerly stroked some of the scales on Percy's neck, trying not to laugh as a shudder ran through his body. "What? Don't like being touched or something?"

Percy turned his head to the side a little, just enough so he could look back at his cousin. "Oh, please. It's fine. I was just thinking, is all. Don't worry about it." There was a moment of silence, the wind brushing past Thalia's face and burning her eyes. Just as she was about to lay her head on Percy's neck, he spoke once more. "Are you doing alright? The flight-er, _trip, _isn't too bad, is it?"

Thalia gave a small smile, allowing her head to lay on Percy's neck. She gently traced a scale with her finger, watching as it glistened in the moonlight and showing varying shades of blue on just the single scale. "It's shockingly relaxing. You make a good dragon, Kelp Head."

Percy laughed a little as he turned his head forwards once more, the sleeping Mark swinging from Percy's horn a little with the movement. The rumbling that ran through Percy's body almost put Thalia to sleep. "Why, thank you. I'm glad you're doing okay, Pinecone Face." He stayed silent for a few moments before humming again, lulling the Daughter of Zeus to sleep. She had never felt so relaxed before as she lay against Percy's shockingly warm body.

The Pegasi had remained silent the entire trip so far, making Percy a little nervous. He looked at Blackjack, who was only a few feet from him. "Hey, Blackjack?"

_"Yeah, Boss?"_

"You... you aren't freaked out or anything, are you?"

Blackjack scoffed. _"Yeah right, like I'm scared of anything. I could take on a horde of Cyclopes and still feel invincible!"_

Percy sighed exasperatedly. "Blackjack, that's not what I meant. I... I was asking if you're freaked out by _me,_ by what I _am._"

_"Oh."_ The Pegasus was silent for a while. _"I'm not freaked out, Boss. Shocked, but definitely not 'freaked out'. You... you being an Ancient One is _very_ important, Percy. Your abilities could change the way the world functions. You by yourself could replenish the planet, bring it back to its former glory before the mortals invaded and built their concrete jungles across the planet. You could help stop global warming, could help make the planet _right_ again."_

Percy stared at his Pegasus in shock. Never did he think Blackjack was so... so _personal_ and _smart_ like that, and _never_ had he heard the black Pegasus call him by his actual name. This was obviously very important to Percy's friend. "You... you want me to use my abilities over nature to help solve some of the world's problems? Like, the ones that some scientists today can't even figure out how to fix?"

Blackjack gave a small sigh. _"That's exactly what I mean. You've always been important, Boss, but you're even _more_ crucial to the planet's survival now than you ever have been before. I can't force you to try fixing the world, but I think you should try. It'd help millions of people, as well as our slowly dying planet."_

Percy was silent for a while, staring ahead. He gave a small nod, glancing at Blackjack. "I understand. Vanessa was telling me about that as well. She said she would've helped 'right Earth's wrongs,' but that she's 'too old to be doing that'." Percy chuckled. "I... I guess that as much as I'd like to be normal, to be _average,_ I never will be. The Fates are cruel, like critics that can change a TV show itself, and my life is their favorite show to watch." Blackjack nodded, and the two remained silent for the remainder of the trip, content with their small and very deep conversation they had.

**Made more blue cookies today... SOOO GOOD... TIME SKIP!**

The group of six landed just outside of Percy and Mark's dorm, sighing in satisfaction that they'd finally reached their destination (even though it was only a thirty to forty minute flight). Percy shrank a few feet, gently flying towards the dorms and setting the saddles down against the side of the building. He walked back towards the Pegasi, telling them to just relax and sleep in the forest until morning, and to try to remain hidden in case any summer students stumbled across the supposedly mythical creatures. Percy wasn't sure if Shifters would see them as Pegasi or horses, and he had no intention to test that. He reached back, leaning on his back legs a little bit so he could gently pluck Thalia off of his back as he shrunk down to his half form, his 6'8 stature and his immense strength making it easy to hold his cousin in his arms bridal style. Mark had woken up when they landed, although he still sat atop Percy's head, gently braiding a strand of the Dragon Shifter's stark white hair. The trio walked to the dorms, and Mark immediately raced to his large bed, sighing content and passing out almost immediately. Percy smiled, shaking his head as he set Thalia down in his bed and pulling the covers up over her. Quickly grabbing a change of clothes from his closet (thank the gods he'd left a few changes of clothes behind), he walked over to Mark's bed, shoving the Son of Hermes over and lying down on the soft king bed. There was no way in Hades Percy was going to even _attempt _sleeping on his bed, and he definitely didn't feel like sleeping on the floor. Plus, Mark didn't need a king bed to himself. He could share. Percy smiled, falling into a comfortable slumber.

_CLICK!_

Percy ignored the flash of light that seemed to pass through his closed eyelids, a frown marring his face as he clutched his pillow tighter.

_CLICK! CLICK!_

Percy groaned in annoyance, holding his hand above his head and cracking his eyes. Hovering over him was Thalia, who was holding a camera in her hand. Percy frowned before rolling his eyes. "Go 'way, Thals... I'm tryin' ta sleep..." he clutched his pillow tighter, which _moved_ all of a sudden.

Percy's eyes flung open. Percy's leg was casually hung over his pillow, his arms wrapped firmly around the squishy object. Only, it wasn't his pillow.

Mark snored loudly in Percy's face, the few inches between their faces doing nothing to stop Percy from gagging at his friend's horrible morning breath. Mark had his monkey tail wrapped tightly around Percy's leg, his arms hugging Percy in the same way Percy was. Percy's face showed absolute disgust as he slapped his hand into Mark's face, making the monkey boy cry out in pain and annoyance. The Son of Poseidon scrambled out of the bed, falling off the side and crawling backwards to his own bed. Mark was yelling profusely at Percy while Thalia laughed loudly and pointed at the Dragon Shifter.

Percy's nose twitched, his eyes twitching a little as well. Mark immediately shut up, apologized for literally no reason, and promptly turned his face towards the wall, bringing the covers over his head. Thalia continued laughing, and Percy turned towards her. His blue tipped fingers were twitching as well now, small drops of glowing blue poison dripping onto the floor and melting through the wood.

Percy took a deep breath, sighing and releasing a large huff of frost into the air. The room was instantly covered in a thin layer of ice, though it seemed thickest around Thalia's feet and the bottom of Mark's bed posts. Thalia immediately shut up, glaring at the ice that held her in place. Percy continued taking deep breaths, ignoring his cousin's shouts of protest. "Hey! Get me out already!"

Percy's eyes snapped open, his silvery sea green slitted eyes glaring at Thalia dangerously. "Shut up." He flicked his finger absentmindedly, a thin layer of ice freezing Thalia's hands to her sides and covering her mouth. "This is the boy's dormitory. We aren't supposed to have girls in here, and as much as you pretend to be one, you obviously aren't. The ice I put on you won't harm you, it's magical after all. However, it'll last for eternity and is indestructible _because_ it's magical ice. You promise to shut up and leave me alone, and I'll unfreeze you. Got it?" Thalia reluctantly gave a small nod, and Percy stood up from his criss cross position near his bed on the floor. He crawled into his bed and faced the wall, raising his hand and giving a small flick of his wrist. He could hear Thalia moving, but he didn't care. He closed his eyes, and went right back to sleep. The sun was barely just rising, after all.

**A/N: Okay, so I know that this is nowhere NEAR where I'd like this story to be, and I plan on (hopefully) updating this, but to be honest this is a story I came up with that I haven't even bothered to touch in a while. I actually want your opinions on whether or not you guys think I should turn this into an ACTUAL story, not some twisted fanfiction of what could've been, ya know? I could publish a REAL STORY, and don't get me wrong here. Fanfiction is amazing, but the idea of publishing my own book sounds beyond incredible to me. Anyways, please read and review, because I value your opinions. **

**Love,**

**sKaEtrgrL**


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